By Jarrett Renshaw
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Joe Biden heads to South America on Thursday for a curtain name with world leaders after over 50 years in U.S. politics, however the man he tried and did not hold from returning to energy is prone to be the main target of many conferences: incoming President Donald Trump.
Biden will maintain non-public conferences with Chinese language President Xi Jinping and the heads of Japan, South Korea and Brazil through the summits of the Asia-Pacific Financial Cooperation, or APEC, in Peru and the Group of 20 main economies, or G20, in Brazil. The conferences over six days are usually not anticipated to yield any main new agreements, senior Biden administration officers mentioned, whilst they’re prone to contact on commerce, safety and world alliances.
“The APEC and G20 can be about one factor … and that’s Donald Trump – and what to anticipate from the subsequent Trump administration on commerce, alliances, and different points,” mentioned Victor Cha, president of the Geopolitics and Overseas Coverage Division on the Heart for Strategic and Worldwide Research.
Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, within the Nov. 5 presidential election after promising People he would impose steep tariffs on all imports, with increased ones geared toward Chinese language items, and signaled a lot softer assist for Ukraine in its battle towards Russia. Harris’ loss got here after Biden was pressured to step apart within the race due to issues that at 81 he was too previous for an additional time period.
Trump’s Republican social gathering additionally received management of each homes of the U.S. Congress, giving him extra energy to push by measures on commerce and different points.
Biden got here into workplace in 2020 searching for to rebuild alliances strained throughout Trump’s first time period and tried to indicate that the U.S. remained engaged past its borders. He strengthened and expanded NATO and labored to counter China within the Indo-Pacific by build up multilateral alliances in Asia.
Trump has a essentially completely different world view than Biden, preferring bilateral conferences the place he can observe transactional diplomacy over multilateral partnerships like NATO.
Nationwide safety adviser Jake Sullivan mentioned on Wednesday that Biden will use the journey to ship the message that America cherishes and invests in its alliances and thank those that have helped cope with an array of world issues.
“It is a message of precept. It is a message of practicality, and it has been one of many causes of President Biden’s life,” he mentioned.
Chatting with reporters aboard Air Drive One en path to Peru on Thursday, Sullivan mentioned the leaders of the U.S., Japan and South Korea have been working to institutionalize trilateral ties as an “enduring function of U.S. coverage,” and mentioned the three international locations would arrange a secretariat for the grouping.
Sullivan additionally mentioned Biden would increase issues with different leaders over the introduction of North Korean troopers into Russia, calling it a big growth. He mentioned he anticipated a “coordinated set of coverage choices” in response to the problem.
SWAN SONG OR LAME DUCK
Biden will meet with President Xi on Saturday through the APEC summit in Lima, White Home officers mentioned. The one-on-one assembly can be Biden’s last alternative to problem the Chinese language chief immediately on its threats towards Taiwan, alleged human rights violations and assist for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It is going to be the primary time the 2 leaders have met in individual since a summit between the pair in California a 12 months in the past. That marked a turning level for U.S.-China relations after Biden’s determination in early 2023 to shoot down a Chinese language spy balloon that drifted over america elevated tensions.
U.S. financial and army competitors with China will outline what the world appears to be like like over the subsequent 30 years, Sullivan mentioned, including that Republicans and Democrats have lengthy demonstrated bipartisanship within the space of overseas coverage.
Trump’s incoming cupboard is stacked with politicians who’ve pushed a tough-on-China message.
Biden wouldn’t go any messages to Xi from Trump, Sullivan mentioned, however will possible communicate concerning the necessity of avoiding a army battle.
“He will even actually reinforce the purpose that to ensure that us to handle this competitors responsibly going ahead, we now have to maintain over the long run the channels of communication at each degree, significantly the army to army degree,” Sullivan mentioned.
Biden and Trump met for 2 hours on the White Home on Wednesday.
Biden can be anticipated to carry a trilateral assembly with Japan Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Erin Murphy, deputy director on the Heart for Strategic and Worldwide Research, mentioned it is not going to be a swan tune for Biden, however a distinct sort of chook.
“Not solely is he a lame duck, however an excellent lame duck as a result of his successor goes to have very completely different insurance policies than he’s,” Murphy mentioned.
