 |
| Global Lenses |
Biden is visiting Asia for the first time as US President. How different is its pivot to Asia from its predecessors and how is the Ukraine war affecting US policy towards the region? It's been a decade since Barack Obama announced a pivot to Asia, and the US administration has talked about China's growing economic, diplomatic and military dominance. A year ago, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that China represented the largest geopolitical test for the United States in the 21st century, but the US concerns elsewhere had blurred its approach focused on Beijing. Now the United States is escalating its support for Ukraine in the war with Russia. Thus, is this conflict challenging long-standing strategic and economic transformation in Asia? South Korea, Joe Biden's first stop in Asia, People hailed his visit as an opportunity to present a united front against North Korea, following reports that leader Kim Jong Un is about to test a seventh nuclear weapon. But analysts are concerned about the proliferation of the arms race.
"Today Yun and I are
committed to strengthening our close engagement and work together to take
on challenges of regional security including addressing the
threat posed by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea by
further strengthening our deterrence, fostering work toward complete
denuclearization of the principle." –Joe
Biden
“We live in an era where the
economy is security and security is the economy. Disruption in the
supply chain caused by changes in the international security order is
directly related to the lives of our people." –Yoon Suk Yeol, South
Korean president.
Analysts say that may not be enough
to bring North Korea to the negotiating table. Kim Jong Un His government
appears determined to increase its military capabilities to ensure that North
Korea has the capability to hold US forces and civilians hostage in South Korea
and Japan. Although the fight against Chinese domination in the region was not
explicitly mentioned, the Biden administration did not obscure the fact. It
sees China as a strategic challenge. President Biden will unveil the
Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. Its members will include South Korea and
Japan. Analysts say the United States is reasserting itself in the region after
former President Donald Trump withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade
agreement. However, China sees the agreement as an attempt to push it
backward. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman criticized the United States
saying it should play its part in bringing peace to the region, rather than
creating divisions.
US strategy to contain, To watch the full video, click: Global Lenses
What is the difference between
Biden's Asia pivot compared to Obama's Pivot to Asia or Trump's policy for
Asia?
The Biden administration has taken
some very important steps to keep the US's focus on the region as a Pacific
nation. The United States, of course, has a wide range of interests, be it
economic, security, cultural, and close ties with the four treaty allies in the
region. I don't really like the word pivot in particular, because it means you
are referring to one to move from one area to another. The United States, as a
world leader, can distribute its attention evenly around the world, and we can
do it again. This is the president's first visit to the region as president. He
is visiting two key US allies, South Korea, which recently inaugurated a new
president, as well as Japan. Both allies with whom the United States has common
interests and very important common values. (Klinck H.)
Competing with Chinese influence?
First, since 1945, the United
States has never left East Asia or Asia in general. So starting the so-called
Pivot to Asia is the wrong strategy. It is now clear that the US government has
been doing something to contain China's rise for many years, including Obama,
Trump, and most recently the Biden administration. it will be a futile endeavor
because the rise of China is a major trend of our time. The United States will
better serve itself to come to terms with China's steady growth. The second
point is that the mega trend, especially in East Asia, is for peace, stability,
and development because people do not really want war or conflict as peace will
be the most critical development for countries like Japan, South Korea, and
China. Promoting peace instead of following in the footsteps of a country that
wants to promote conflict. (Gao V.)
Allies in Indo-pacific:
South Korea's new president, Yun has launched a campaign to strengthen ties with the US. The Prime Minister of Japan Fumio Kishida is working with the US.
The United States has been and will
continue to be Japan's number topmost priority. Biden, along with Narendra Modi
from India and newly elected Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, is set
to focus next week on the Quad and Indo-Pacific. It doesn't have to be a
bilateral focus. The focus is going to be multifaceted and the scope they are
talking about is the Indo-Pacific region. Quad Salience will once again be
emphasized by all members and all participating leaders. The Indo-Pacific
Economic Framework is primarily an attempt by the US to compete with China when
it comes to development and economic integration in the region. The fact
is that the United States played a major role in the so-called peaceful rise of
China in the last decade. In addition, the encouragement and facilitation of
further economic integration by the United States is a good thing for all
parties concerned that we all want economic growth to be a common element in
our relationship, be it bilateral or multilateral. So, this is something that
all countries in the region should welcome. (Tomohiko D.)
Read more: The US strategy against China: Blinken's speech unveiled
TPP and IPEF:
The TPP was a comprehensive
organization. The United States pulled out under former President Donald Trump
and now Biden is setting up the IPEF.
I find it quite ironic once
again that they are referring to our current difficulties in the US market
economy compared to the Chinese economy, which is not really a market economy.
When you consider the role of the CCP, along with a high percentage of
government agencies. Once again, I find this extremely ironic and I would say
that I certainly support an open market and the ability of companies to enter
and exit countries freely. China has imposed a number of restrictions on
foreign companies operating within its borders, including the mandatory
establishment of joint ventures, the establishment of a CCP cell within
organizations, and so on. If you go through the recent polls of Western
companies, whether the American Chamber of Commerce in China or the EU Chamber
of Commerce polls, the trend is quite negative and it reflects the heavy
thumb of Xi's Government On all aspects of working in China. You will see that
the trend lines are moving towards diverse companies, whether they are using
China as the basis of their supply chain and at the same time diversifying
China as a marketplace. Therefore, it is hoped that some internal reforms will
be made in China to make it a truly welcome country. (Gao V.)
Building blocks and choice for
countries:
Countries such as the United States
and Japan must co-operate with a full market economy as well as with an open
and transparent government to enact as many laws as possible, taking into
account the standard of labor, economic, environmental conditions, and
intellectual property. China has not yet overcome these obstacles. You get every
company, not only a state-owned company, but a private company runs effectively by
members of the Communist Party. The Chinese may want to believe that their rise
is peaceful and it is certainly true that rise is a major trend of our century,
but they are rewriting the stalemate. What she is doing in East Asia, in the
East China Sea and the South China Sea, for example, is undermining the
territorial integrity of Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam every day without
exception. This is not something you can call peace. Returning to the economic
framework, the Belt and Road Initiative is a China-centric initiative, while
TPP and IPEF are open to member countries of the Indo-Pacific regions and they
are setting the highest possible standards for China. (Tomohiko D.)
The war in Ukraine: What effect is
it having on Asian policy?
First of all, peace and stability
in East Asia is paramount if we look at Japan. Surprisingly, Japan also does
not have good relations with Russia, South Korea, China, or the Chinese province
of Taiwan. It has territorial disputes with all these countries or with the
province of China. This is despite the fact that Japan surrendered
unconditionally at the end of World War II. So I hope that instead of trying to
rewrite history, Japan will promote peace, stability, and good neighborliness.
Japan surrendered unconditionally and Japan would make a big mistake if it
invited the United States to proliferate nuclear weapons in Japan because it
would now be an injustice to the Japanese people. Secondly, in terms of
economic development, China has never forced any foreign country to enter
China. Millions of foreign companies enter China voluntarily if you tell me a
single country that China is forced to enter the Chinese market at gunpoint or
by force. They want to come to China because of the size and growth of
the Chinese. Around 2010, the Chinese economy was similar to that of Japan.
Today, just 12 years later, the Chinese economy is about 350 times larger than
Japan's. China’s rise is the mega trend, whatever you call it. This is the real
mega trend of our time. (Gao V.)
Ukraine war and the US focus on
Asia:
What a tragedy that Russia has so
close relations with the People's Republic. In fact, the Chinese government has
backed Putin. It is a tragedy that they have invaded Ukraine, killing tens of
thousands of people. The United States, along with its partners and allies and
like-minded countries around the world, has come to the aid of Ukraine and
provided it with articles related to its defense. This again shows that the
United States can do more than one thing at a time. As far as I know, none of
our military resources have been diverted from the Indo-Pacific Theater to
support and strengthen NATO's defense. This certainly leads our senior leaders
and policymakers to focus on one part of the world while many of us who have
spent so much time focusing on the Asia Pacific focus on it for ourselves. The
United States National Defense Strategy, published just a few weeks ago,
specifically states that our number one priority theater is Indo-Pacific, and
we have found that China is facing a military threat. (Klinck H.)
US credibility:
The United States swing between
Donald Trump's United States First policy and Pivot to Asia during the
Obama era. Now it is back with Biden in a different way.
The US presidents come and go, but
the fact remains that Japan hosts the largest US military action. Without
Japan, America's Asia strategy cannot take effect. Therefore, Japan must urge
the United States to remain steadfast in this part of the world. I am not
asking the United States to stay, I am asking the Japanese government to do
everything possible to make the US President as safe and reliable as
possible.
The Ukraine war and China's plans
for Taiwan in the South China Sea:
US troops have never left Japan
since 1945. In fact, US troops are still occupying Japan. I hope that Japan
will focus on peace and development and eventually achieve its full sovereignty
instead of following in American footsteps in the world. Second, the Ukrainian war
has its own logic. It is wrong to say that the international community is
against Russia in this war. In fact, you are talking about only 30 countries
that opposed economic sanctions against Russia and they are changing the way
sanctions are imposed. Most countries in the world are not imposing sanctions
on Russia. I hope the United States understands that China is not an enemy of
the United States and that the Chinese people are not an enemy of the United
States. (Gao V.)
Victor
Gao, a Chair Professor at Soochow
University
Subscribe to our website and allow
notifications for more in-depth articles.
0 Comments