A week before US President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated, outgoing US President Joe Biden delivered a speech at the State Department outlining the successes of his foreign policy. Biden's speech is among the leading topics in the Western press today, BTA reported.
In his speech, which lasted nearly 30 minutes, he touched on dozens of issues related to almost every continent - from the crumbling alliances he has faced since taking office to the recent ceasefire talks between Israel and "Hamas", for which the outgoing president expressed optimism, the newspaper writes. "Washington Post".
Biden said he had sought to see the United States lead coalitions aimed at solving global issues. This was a rebuke, albeit indirect, to Donald Trump's so-called "America First" agenda, commented "Washington Post".
"My administration is handing over very strong cards to the next administration," Biden emphasized in his speech. "And we are leaving them to an America that has more friends and stronger alliances, (an America) whose rivals are weak and under pressure, an America that is leading again," Biden also said, quoted by "Washington Post".
It is likely that after Trump takes office, American foreign policy will undergo sharp changes. The Republican president-elect has already caused a stir with his statements about expanding US sovereignty over Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal. In his speech at the State Department, Biden seemed to be making a clear statement that he was leaving the US in good and strong shape before the start of the second Trump era and all the turmoil it could bring, the "Washington Post" commented.
Biden did not mention Trump by name once, nor did he address the question of how radically different his successor's worldview is or what might happen in the next four years, the "New York Times" notes. Biden did, however, make a few pointed remarks.
"It is more effective to deal with China together with partners than to act alone," the outgoing president said. This is clearly a hint at Trump's "America first" approach, the "New York Times" believes. Biden also said the world must "make sure Putin's war ends with a just and lasting peace for Ukraine", which is a hint at Trump's desire to make a deal with the Russian president, the American newspaper writes.
Biden did not give Trump advice on how to solve conflicts in the Middle East or other problems around the world. The only advice he explicitly gave the next administration was to focus on artificial intelligence and the transition to clean energy.
He noted that some people around Trump deny climate change. "I think they come from another century. (...) They are completely wrong. This is the greatest existential threat to humanity," Biden warned, quoted by the newspaper. "New York Times".
On paper, few American presidents can boast the foreign policy integrity of Joe Biden, writes the British newspaper "The Guardian". He is a veteran statesman with almost half a century of experience, accumulated before he headed the White House. At the end of his term, however, his critics argue that he will leave a legacy of cautious and insufficiently strong diplomacy, the publication comments. Even US allies acknowledge that the Biden government is still striving to achieve a foreign policy success that would stand as a cornerstone of his administration, the Guardian also writes.
That has not stopped Biden from declaring victory in the final days of his administration and also trying at the last minute to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza that could possibly save his legacy before Trump takes office, the Guardian points out.
"Thanks to our government, the US is winning the global race," Biden said in his speech to the State Department. "If this is a victory, many Americans will find it hard to imagine what a loss would look like", the British newspaper commented.
The Biden administration has spent much of its time and political capital abroad trying to master a series of wars and crises in which it has seemed powerless to impose its will, the "Guardian" also writes. Ukraine remains under siege, Russia is pressuring the defending Ukrainian army, and Kiev is anxiously awaiting Trump's return to the White House, as the Republican president-elect insists on achieving peace through negotiations with Putin as soon as possible, the British newspaper lists.
Furthermore, according to the publication, the diplomatic efforts that the Biden government made to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip have often stalled. "The Guardian" also notes that the Israeli army has also taken military action on the territory of Lebanon.
"Biden's greatest failure is the collapse of the American policy of deterring adversaries who are on the offensive", writes the American newspaper "Wall Street Journal". Biden's chaotic escape from Afghanistan sent a message of weakness, and Russia, China and Iran saw that the moment was right for action. Israel has restored some deterrence against Iran, but Biden, who has opposed almost every military decision by Israel, has had little to contribute to this, the Wall Street Journal also writes.
The president could have regained his credibility if he had asked Congress to begin rebuilding the US's defense capabilities. Instead, he proposed cutting defense spending in line with inflation. Biden left it to Trump to rebuild the military amid a budget deficit of about $2 trillion a year. If these are "strong cards," what would a weak hand look like, the American publication asks.