Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, President Biden assured European allies that “America is back” and said the US is “fully committed” to NATO. He spoke of the importance of “transatlantic” cooperation in places like Iraq and Afghanistan and emphasized working with Europe to confront China and Russia.
“You know, we must prepare together for a long-term strategic competition with China,” Biden said. “How the United States, Europe, and Asia work together to secure the peace and defend our shared values and advance our prosperity across the Pacific will be among the most consequential efforts we undertake.”
Confronting China appears to be the priority for the Biden administration’s foreign policy. The Pentagon is currently reviewing its posture in Asia and US warships are regularly sailing near China’s coast. European countries are also starting to challenge China’s claims in the South China Sea with naval deployments.
Taking a hostile tone on Russia, Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to “weaken European — the European project and our NATO Alliance.” He mentioned Ukraine and said “standing up for the sovereignty and territorial integrity” of Russia’s neighbor is a “vital concern” for Europe and the US. “The challenges with Russia may be different than the ones with China, but they’re just as real,” he said.
NATO concluded a two-day meeting of the alliance’s defense ministers on Thursday where the US-Taliban peace deal was discussed. No decision was made on whether or not NATO and the US will leave Afghanistan by the May 1st deadline, but all signs indicate foreign troops will stay in the country.
On Friday, Biden said the US is “committed to consulting closely with our NATO Allies and partners on the way forward in Afghanistan.” Although he gave no hints about a possible withdrawal, Biden did speak favorably of the attempt at talks between the Taliban and the US-backed Afghan government. “My administration strongly supports the diplomatic process that’s underway and to bring an end to this war that is closing out 20 years,” he said.
Over in Iraq, NATO announced a major force increase, bringing troop levels from 500 to about 4,000. Biden welcomed the decision. He said the troop increase is “vital to the ongoing fight against ISIS.”
In his speech, Biden took shots at the previous administration’s stance on NATO and its overall relationship with Europe. Besides the rhetoric, the only significant change President Trump attempted in Europe was a troop drawdown in Germany, something Biden reversed. “I’ve ordered the halting of withdrawal of American troops from Germany,” he said.
Under Trump’s plan, the US was set to reduce troop numbers in Germany from about 36,000 to 24,000 and cap the number of soldiers allowed in the country at 25,000. “I’m also lifting the cap imposed by the previous administration on the number of US forces able to be based in Germany,” Biden said.
While Biden took an aggressive tone in his speech and signaled more intervention across the world, he did mention the importance of cooperation and treaties, like New START, the vital nuclear arms control treaty Washington and Moscow recently agreed to extend. He also discussed Iran and the 2015 nuclear deal.
“We have said we’re prepared to reengage in negotiations with the P5+1 on Iran’s nuclear program,” Biden said, referring to the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, the signatories of the Iran nuclear deal. His comments came a day after the State Department said the US would be willing to talk with Iran if the EU initiated a meeting.
Nothing new, much of the same. But he will meet a much more assertive Russia and China (and perhaps Iran). The only way forward is the US abandoning its attempts of “leading the world” and accepting a multi-polar world
Definitely Iran. Moderate president Rouhani is considered now to be a mistake because he bargained with the irresponsible US. There is an Iran presidential election in June with one candidate, General Hossein Dehghan, a military adviser to Iran’s leader. In a recent Guardian interview, Dehghan believes Joe Biden is continuing Donald Trump’s foreign policies and noted, “Tehran is preparing retaliatory measures to force the U.S. to change its diplomatic trajectory.” The hardliners will take over and give the US no quarter, with increasing Iran ties to Russia and China.
“America is back” just in time to live with the new EU relationship with China and leading country Germany’s new relationship with Russia.
The EU-China Comprehensive Investment Agreement signed last year will increase bilateral investment flows and improve EU access into the Chinese market. China’s trade with the EU now exceeds the US trade. Also Germany moves closer to Russia with its desire for Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine and the new NordStream 2 gas pipeline. . . .Welcome to the neighborhood, Joe, in an increasingly multipolar world which is no longer accepting of US imperialism. Add to this the upcoming US losses in South Asia, the Middle East and elsewhere and Biden (unfortunately) be motivated to do an Obama and destroy some helpless nation with a war or two that he hopes will boost him out of the failure category.
Does the US have the economic power to stay in the game, or is it all bluff? How will geo-economics shake out when the dust settles from the pandemic? The last 0% Treasury bond auction was taken up almost totally by the Fed and Social Security. A few Countries bought to cover their import needs, but we’ve arrived to where nobody wants our money, and an imperial military is very expensive, not to mention global warming, and domestic pressure. I think Bannon was right about
this. The US is a sinking ship desperately in need of drydock; but the War Party Industrial Complex can’t allow that. So the only viable course now seems to be “use it or lose it” …?
Plus the US is crumbling internally from corruption and ignorance. Texas is the canary in the coalmine, US infrastructure is crumbling. The failure to face the pandemic has shuttered the stores on Main Street USA. Wasting money on crappy Pentagon gear (like F-35, still in development, engines no good) has been accelerated. The do-nothing impeachment Congress has a seventy percent disapproval rating, with another Capitol raid scheduled. Party-school colleges have been dumbed down and made more expensive, while the growing barriers to Chinese endanger what STEM programs still exist. And then there’s Biden with all his Zionistic Obama holdovers, and Austin who has now called for less Taliban violence. The US Master who displaced you has spoken!! Accept it!!! . . .hah. . .. We’re busy printing money, no time for you.
Bannon said too many contradictory things. He also advocated the disaster that is called China policy. All Trump did was reveal our weaknesses. He should have known better. And then compounded the disaster by shifting the debate from economy to ideology. Some cold warriors actually believe that Chinese are a giant Poland, willing to give up anything for US to love them.
In 1990, at the end of Cold War, US and Europe were 70% of global GDP. Today, both of them are only 33% of global GDP. China is another 20%, and the rest of the globe, 47%.
When one looks at Purchase Price Parity measures of national product, Europe does even worse. Russia has overtaken Germany on PPP basis.
Our best bet would be to focus on domestic issues that are hindering growth. Sustainability should be the byword. This means infrastructure, strengthening public education to insure meritocracy and a largest possible pool of future talent. Private schools are not measuring up, and what rises to the top are children of wealthy and influential. The narrowing base of talent cannot produce enough engineers, and scientists. The trashing of public schools and teachers is a pathetic, greedy behavior of money eager to sink their teeth into public funds for private profit.
We see this happening with utilities, roads, railroad and public services. Privatized”efficiency” means as little investment, for maximum profit. From levies in New Orleans to California perennial water shortage, to Texas electricity.
How will foreign wars — us “getting back” — address any of our problems, except military employment for more and more unemployed and unemployable,
At present, China is top EU trading partner, top trading partner to India, South Korea, Japan, and the slew of other countries.
If snd when a “little” war materializes to affirm our “return” to the “top of the table”, it may not be a conflict of our choosing, but a challenge we may have to take, and may end up revealing weaknesses. As UK learned with Suez challenge.
The last thing the US needs to do is ” strengthening public education”. Public education is at the very center of the quagmire the US finds itself in. Public education is more political propaganda than education. Now that propaganda has turned ever more malignant.
Radicalized teachers unions along with a corrupt political system have a unbreakable grip on public education. The population is at the mercy of a powerful coalition that demands more and more and delivers less.
A new educational system is needed. One that provides the young with the foundation skills they will need for a prosperous and free future. That goal is no longer possible within the public educational system.
Education needs to become functional, innovative and competitive instead of corrupt and political. If that effort fails, we stand at the edge of an abiss.
The competition game, the “rat race,” is over. Willy nilly we are on the way back to the 19th century. The unholy alliance of Capital and Science is the culprit of Modern Civilization.
Do not get me started! If you think it is not possible to achieve good education in public schools, let me tell you a secret. It is in my view impossible to get it with the private school education, either.
Look at today’s private schools, and what they produce. The parents of privilege (or those who desperately aspire to that status), send children to private schools not to be better educated, but to get into right university whether they are capable or not. Private schools ARE EXEMPT FROM STANDARDIZED TESTING. And private schools are not required to accept children from disadvantaged backgrounds, many with serious emotional disabilities. Poverty has an impact on education, and public schools must take in everyone. Public schools also must deal with children who come in without speaking English, who do not have food at home, or even place to wash their clothes. Public schools are responsible for homeless children, those that stay in shelters with their parents, and school provides them with three meals a day, and a laundry service.
Let me be clear. The Union business is a myth. I do not know which states still have Unions and union bargaining. Because it is certainly NOT this way in Virginia. Public schools in northern Virginia — even with the burdens of providing social services for underprivileged, non-English speakers, mainstreamed deaf students, emotionally disabled or
mentally retarded — outperform many private schools. Why? Because they have better management, and applied technology to learning earlier than private counterparts. Public teachers are constantly required to go to school in order to have their licenses extended.
And COVID proved all the advantages of good public schools — each child has own school provided laptop, and are using platforms that serves students, teachers and parents, to very transparently follow what is happening with their child’s education. Leveraging technology, many public schools are beating private ones hands down.
Problem is, public schools must be relieved from the burden of dealing with a range of problems. Dealing with poverty and social work, should not be their concern, except in cases of child protection. Providing environment for children to learn English, place for children with serious behavioral problems, or other physical and mental disabilities — should be a specialty education, not to be mixed in with mainstream education.
Especially, not to use the TEST RESULTS of children that are not capable of keeping with requirements. Today, even children in special education affect the scores in public schools. This was done on purpose, to have an excuse to impose federal controls — a first step to turning them over to charter schools, a money milking schema with better painted classrooms.
I am not unaware of the horrendous school districts, which may be too hopeless to save. But the solution is not privatizing or the biggest failures, charter schools. The solution is to look at the most advanced schools and see what is best, and create a good model.
The problems with privileged private schools is — their model cannot extend to general population. Private schools thrive in the environment of privilege, being shielded from the reality, not testing students, and having a fast track to universities. But they are decidedly not better.
The danger to the society is — there is a small segment of population that has an easy part to higher education, but they are actually very average talent. There is nothing wrong with being average, but if universities get more and more of such average talent, that is what we get. In our future, there will is very little engineering, and other science.
It is because money has distorted what talent is.
In northern Virginia, a Valedictorian student cannot get scholarship to a good private University, and even to the prestigious public universities, like University of Virginia. Without money, they can go to a lower tier public university, with scholarship.
Our problems in education are IMMENSE. But there are no SIMPLE solutions, like just get rid of public schools. Public schools open doors to wide range of TALENT, and their parent’s finances are not important. If they are fortunate enough to get into one of those good public schools, they have a chance in life.
As for the pampered offspring — do you know what kind of difficulties they have when their parents run out of money, and they are back in public schools? They are often BELOW grade level in many subjects, have to work on more complex projects than they are used to, and nobody will spoon feed them with all they need to get good grades. And exposed to mandatory SOL annual testing, they fall apart, and blame public schools.
No rush in making decisions. We have so many problems, that we need MORE light to be thrown on the subject. We need to first EDUCATE OURSELVES about the subject, before we start reforming education, and that included PRIVATE education as well.
I agree. China is winning all the markets and resources; and, has the vastly superior human capital. If we could possibly shift from quantity (consumerism) to quality (cultural enrichment) we might have a future as a healthy national community to face the oncoming ecological time of troubles; but the existing structural dynamics (and all of US history) preclude that. And all our institutions -military, political, civil service, judicial, press, education, business, unions, pop culture, even sports- are so corrupt, so degenerate (so type Trump), there’s distinctly no hope for revolution or even reform. Inexorably we’re sinking to the 3rd world modality of decaying empires.
The problem is that the imperial think-tankers see all this as well; and, since they’re the critters of corruption, with no thought of high culture or humanity, and conclude that our only hope lies with our killing machine. The ‘true bloods’ in DC or Tel Aviv wouldn’t lose a wink over sacrificing half the global population.
It’s all bluff. US pumps up its GDP by producing weapons it does not need. Tanks and bombs and ship all add to GDP; but how to they improve the life of the average American? So now the US government has to “use it or lose it”, meaning it has to find new targets to justify the gigantic psy-ops by the MIC on the American tax payor.
Ultimately though, they will need to use those guns on us. So they matter very much for “the people that matter” … making us produce the guns they’ll use to kill us.
There is a small problem — the courting of NATO alliance has exactly same purpose as Trump’s. It all boils down to allies “bring consulted”, but basically being asked to participate in US led global “leadership”.
And will be just as enthusiastically received. They do not have money to spend on defense from non-existent dangers. NATO has no interest in South China Sea, as China is interested in keeping it open more then US. So, why insert itself in the area? To “contain” China, that is threaten their commercial traffic. What is Europe’s interest in that? OK, let me guess. Europe first, then and US have dominated global trade for hundreds of years. “Setting rules” meant ripping privileges and benefits. So, “containing” Russia and China would represent continuance of domination — and if no domination, at least convince Russia and China to accept some terms and conditions that will prolong the dominance for a little linger. Then hope fora technological breakthrough to come back to the top. The message from Biden thus is — we must be united to pull this off.
The down side? There may not be any wiggle room for China and Russia to give very much.
And playing military card risks a Suez moment. Because for West, the “danger” and “aggression ” by Russia and China is largely imagined, and offenses mostly concocted.
But the other way around, it is perceived as real.
Thus, their thinking is sharper, defensive goals being primary, with offensive goals only in the service of defense.
Should any military mishap happen, it could be used by Russia and China to create a mini-Suez moment. Orca demonstration of capability without actually having to use it.
Unless Biden has negotiations in mind, and the loud talk is an opener. The entire West has very little to offer to the world, and has bought into its own narrative.
Without going into Belt & Road investments, let us take a simpler example. Russian COVID vaccine is not just being sold at half the price of Pfizer or Moderna. With many countries an agreement is reached to establish production capacities locally. One of the most devastating impacts of neoliberal global policies is a degradation of science and technology in many countries that had earlier their own capacities and became dependent on imports. At present, countries like Argentina, Turkey, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, etc have the deal with Russia to establish their own capacities for production. This is a different model.
Yes, Biden campaigned from his basement and now has already reneged on his main promises ($2K checks, minimum wage increase, student debt forgiveness, etc) and has also accepted Trumpism by making America great again but with ally assistance.
On Iran, Biden has accepted the Trump sanctions and will probably suggest more on precision ballistic missiles and regional influence. Who still claims that (in every case) the next president will be different and better than the previous one?
The rest of the world, allies and enemies, is onto the sham and making known they won’t buckle under it. Especially the claim that Russia and China are a “threat” is ridiculous, only useful for the outrageous Pentagon annual budget.
And the world breaths a collective sigh of relief knowing those 12,000 troops will be staying put and keeping the balance of power with the good guys. And with the added bonus of removing the 25,oo0 cap. A real game changer. AIB.
https://www.pravda.ru/politics/1593455-sovetevropy/
The Russians appear ready to leave the Council of Europe.
http://oneworld.press/?module=articles&action=view&id=1930
Who wants America back? Anyone? Maybe Boris Johnson? Anyone else in UK? Has Biden nothing to do at home? In Texas for example? Or NY? Or how about Washington DC?
The ones who count: the Davos crowd, World Econ Forum, Bilderberg, …, “the Barons of the Earth,” many of whom, sadly, are Russian, Chinese (Taiwan, Hong Kong), and Iranian.
Iranians! of course. I hadn’t thought of that. You must be right.
Yes, there’s always a 5th column. And the CIA is ever diligent to employ it.
The newest variant of Roosevelt’s DOG-Plan.
“America is back” to picking up NATO’s tab and
doing the heavy lifting for the Euros?
“America is continuing” would be more appropriate in that context.
America is resuming 0bama policies,
which is a change for the worse.
America is resuming Obama policies, some of which are better than Trump’s policies, and some of which are worse.
America is also continuing most of Trump’s worst policies.
In other words, business as usual on steroids.
Not talking about all policies.
Here he was talking to the Euros,
that means NATO, funding and adventures.
That is definitely worse.
The difference between Trump and Biden on NATO, funding and adventures is that Trump pissed and moaned about making other NATO members “pay their fair share,” while continuing the gravy train and the adventures, while Biden doesn’t bother to pretend he’s anything other than what he is (and what Trump was).
Trump, in fact, accomplished getting NATO to increase their spending,
no previous president ever really tried.
https://nypost.com/2019/12/01/nato-touts-unprecedented-defense-spending-following-trumps-calls-for-parity/
Trump reduced US troops in Syria but now,
Biden is ramping up troop deployments in Syria.
https://theirishsentinel.com/2021/02/13/us-military-deployment-in-syria-arranging-the-middle-east-narrative-to-push-the-biden-agenda-forward/
Trump’s deal with the Taliban to leave is now on hold,
while NATO pisses and moans
about wanting (us) to stay (to protect them).
The trend established by Trump has been reversed by Biden.
And that is why the Euros are celebrating.
With Biden, the plan is: Europe FIRST!
Getting NATO to increase their spending is not a good thing.
Trump greatly increased US troops in Syria before reducing them to Obama-era levels. Now Biden is doing the same thing Trump did.
Unless you have access to information the public doesn’t, you have no way of knowing whether the deal with the Taliban is “on hold” (according to the administration, they’re “reviewing” it — there’s a difference).
The trend continued by Trump from many past presidents is, for the most part, being continued by Biden. That trend is “talk a lot of shit but don’t accomplish much if anything.”
NATO paying THEIR share is better than us paying theirs for them.
Trump took down ISIS, a reason for the increase troops.
Unless you have info the public doesn’t, what justifies Biden doing it?
NATO is demanding the US stay in Afghanistan, Biden is “reviewing”, that.
That “is not a good thing”,
he should follow through and get out.
But remember what he told them, “America is back”.
The Biden’s trend continues by every other recent president’s for
more foreign military involvement, the only exception was Trump.
“Trump took down ISIS”
And yet every day since, ISIS attacks have been reported right here.
I agree that Biden should keep to the terms of the Afghanistan peace deal. Of course, some terms of that deal purport to bind NATO, which the US had no power to unilaterally do. They’ve not agreed to leave. They should, and if they don’t they should get zero US support for staying.
Trump was not an exception to more military involvement. He escalated in Syria, he escalated in Afghanistan, he escalated versus Iran, and he re-intervened in Somalia.
Business as usual, no matter what hallucinations your antigen-positive Trump Derangement Syndrome causes you to suffer.
That’s like saying they the FBI never took down Mafia,
they crushed them in their heyday.
But the Mafia will always be there,
more manageable and not near as troublesome. Ditto ISIS.
Al Qaeda, is still around, but nobody cares because they are toothless.
Same for ISIS.
The better leadership course would be for Biden to say he will abide by the negotiated agreement, let NATO do whatever. As it is, he appears to be wavering.
Trump’s distinction, is he did not start any new military conflict,
unlike every recent past president.
Escalating, for the purpose of ending, is not a bad thing.
He should have completely left Syria, Iraq and by now Afghanistan.
He should not have counted on a second term to finish it.
In fact had he, he might of got a second term.
They all suck, just some less than others.
Getting NATO to increase their spending is not a good thing.
Trump greatly increased US troops in Syria before reducing them to Obama-era levels. Now Biden is doing the same thing Trump did.
Unless you have access to information the public doesn’t, you have no way of knowing whether the deal with the Taliban is “on hold” (according to the administration, they’re “reviewing” it — there’s a difference).
The trend continued by Trump from many past presidents is, for the most part, being continued by Biden. That trend is “talk a lot of shit but don’t accomplish much if anything.”
Getting NATO to increase their spending is not a good thing.
Trump greatly increased US troops in Syria before reducing them to Obama-era levels. Now Biden is doing the same thing Trump did.
Unless you have access to information the public doesn’t, you have no way of knowing whether the deal with the Taliban is “on hold” (according to the administration, they’re “reviewing” it — there’s a difference).
The trend continued by Trump from many past presidents is, for the most part, being continued by Biden. That trend is “talk a lot of shit but don’t accomplish much if anything.”
Boy are you misinformed
Disagree. Biden is likely to take the worst of Obama’s foreign policy and add it to the worst of Trumps foreign policy.
You’d have to explain the differences. Trump wanting others to pony up more for an alliance that should be dissolved didn’t change anything as far as NATO is concerned. NATO existence/expansion is the problem not who pays the tab. So we continue.
Briben is moving more US troops into Syria as we speak
and NATO is stating they will stay in Afghanistan and are pushing Briben to do the same.
“The US is back” means a change is afoot from the former.
Cooperating with NATO rather than opposing it.
Two countries were added to NATO during Trumps term. Trumps opposition to NATO was based on money. Like his “opposition” to wars. I don’t have any doubts that Biden will be more of the same, or Obama was any different but we weren’t/aren’t leaving NATO under any of them and that is the ONLY solution.
Biden has halted departures from Afghanistan, Iraq and increased US presence in Syria. All benefiting NATO.
“America is back” has meaning, the Euros cheer because America as vassal to globalist Europe is exactly what the Euros want. You can quibble, but the Euros know what they are cheering about.
You’re arguing with yourself. I’m not defending Biden. In fact, I don’t disagree with what you say. But Trump expanded NATO like Obama and Bush before him. The fact that Biden is benefiting NATO is because we are still in NATO. It’s not like the alliance was on the verge of collapse under Trump. The alliance itself is the problem and any incremental “improvements” from one president to another won’t change anything.
The Euros thought (correctly) those “incremental ‘improvements'” actually changed a lot.
They had to pay their own freight,
they want the US to remain in Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq and
the ME in general.
With Trump all of that was receding,
with Biden “America is back”!
Nothing is ever perfect,
only better (relatively speaking) or worse.
We are now going in the direction of worse.
Just the obvious fact.
“With Trump all of that was receding”
But “all that” increased in the beginning, and well into, his term. I suppose we will have to wait until the end of Biden’s term, or at least much further into it, to compare the two. Trump did his own surge in Afghanistan, lifted the rules of engagement and dropped more bombs(including the MOAB) than at any other time other than the initial invasion. He also did two missile attacks on Syria and dropped more bombs on Somalia than Obama and Bush combined. And that’s not even counting the sanctions. He also jumped in bed with the Saudis, making his first state visit to that hellhole while participating in a sword dance and some orb rubbing. The same Saudis that he berated to no end on the campaign trail. So, to me, MAGA and AIB can only be compared at a later point in Biden’s term. I’m betting on a very similar 4 years.
The Euros are cheering the shift in direction
from Trump’s to Biden’s, “America is back.”
You can’t see a difference (only because you don’t want to) but they do.
Which is we pay more,
we do more of what they want and
we bleed more.
Halting withdrawals from Afghanistan, Iraq and reversing course by increasing Syrian deployments
is what they desired and now applaud.
None of that was happening under Trump.
You’re arguing against something as obvious as gravity.
Yes, I already said I agree with that. I guess you didn’t want to reply to the comment I made.
By “pony up more” he means increase their defense budget. It has little to do with the actual budget of NATO. It mean EU should become an armed camp, like the US. And it also means the EU should buy from US, not build for itself.
The Biden-Harris regime was installed through chicanery and not given power through a legitimate election. What power the drooling simp and the slag possess comes from the barrel of a gun, and what parent or spouse wants his son or daughter, husband or wife to suffer and die at the command of a puppet with less legitimacy and less representative of the country’s people even than a Hitler or Stalin?
To the extent that there’s really no such thing as a “legitimate election” in the US, you’re right that he was not installed through one.
But the election he was installed through was not in any particular less “legitimate” than the one before it, or the one before that, or the one before that …
You are right of course, but each election does see its own new variations on manipulation of voters and who votes. They are details, as for example the infamous Florida butterfly ballots and examination of them in 2000.
The impact of Covid-19 and executive orders to cope with it put an unusual emphasis on what was new in manipulation.
It is too soon to know, too little hard reliable data, just what exactly was done this time that was really new, or changed emphasis of things already done, or the overall real impact of the new.
We can be sure that by the next election, the parties will not just know more, they’ll double down on it and do a lot more of whatever they think they can that “worked.” They’ll also come up with new things, as they always do for every election.
We can be sure that by the next election, the parties will not just know more, they’ll double down on it and do a lot more of whatever they think they can that “worked.”
Thanks Mark for acknowledging that both parties participate.
Biden seems to have questioned the idea that confronting China is the priority for national security. The Dem party has always been strongly pro-NATO & Atlantic Council using the tired but useful ‘Russia is bad’ strategy. The main objective seems to be to keep a US boot on Europe’s neck, especially Germany.
Biden has followed this script, along with personalizing Russia. “Putin seeks to weaken . . .NATO”, but Biden doesn’t mention China’s Xi by name. There is a national security threat from Russia, but civilian commercial (& corporative) dangers from China that “that undercut the foundations of the international economic system.”
More to the point, speaking to Munich Biden characterized China and Russia in different ways, China is a competitor but Russia is a threat.
>”You know, we must prepare together for a long-term strategic competition with China.”
>”You know, this is also — this is also how we’re going to be able to meet the threat from Russia.” . .here