US President Joe Biden took aim at China and Russia in his first speech to Congress on Wednesday, pledging to protect American interests against the countries’ aggressive actions. However, the president emphasised his belief in his “diplomacy first” approach to foreign policy and stressed that he was not looking for an escalation in tensions with either country.
“We’re in a competition with China and other countries to win the 21st Century,” the leader said, noting that Beijing for closing in in the race of technological advancement. “We have to develop and dominate the products and technologies of the future,” Biden added. He reiterated his commitment to protecting American workers and industries from unfair trade practices “like subsidies to state-owned enterprises and the theft of American technology and intellectual property,” and said that he would work tirelessly to level the playing field in the global economy. Biden further noted that had spoken to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and expressed that while the US welcomed the competition, it was “not looking for conflict.”
Biden also said that he had made Xi aware of a continued “strong military presence” in the Indo-Pacific, “just as we do for NATO in Europe.” In recent years, the US has stepped up its engagement with various countries in the region through bilateral or multilateral dialogues to promote freedom of navigation and rule of law in the East and South China Seas. This includes the Quad grouping that Washington is a part of, along with India, Japan, and Australia.
China has previously accused the Quad of being an Indo-Pacific version of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) that seeks to undermine Beijing’s rise. Washington has also increased cooperation with Taiwan, amid increasing Chinese aggression against the island nation it claims as its own. The president also stressed America’s commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms and said that he had made it clear to Xi that America would not back down when its values were under threat.
With regards to Russia, Biden once again said that though he did not seek escalation, he had made “very clear” to President Vladimir Putin that the country would face the appropriate consequences for its actions. “I responded in a direct and proportionate way to Russia’s interference in our elections and cyber-attacks on our government and businesses,” he said, referring to the recently imposed sanctions. However, Biden also underscored the need to cooperate with Moscow when it came to issues of mutual interest. To this end, he highlighted the countries’ work in extending the New START Treaty on nuclear arms and said that the two sides were working together to address the climate crisis as well.