Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on a tour of the Asia Pacific where he is reassuring regional allies that the US is still committed to its Asia “pivot” despite the recent focus on Russia and Ukraine.
“There are a few other things going on in the world right now, some of you may have noticed. We have a bit of a challenge with Ukraine and Russian aggression. We’re working 24/7 on that,” Blinken said Thursday in Australia.
“But we know, the president knows and each of you knows this better than anyone else, that so much of this century is going to be shaped by what happens here in the Indo-Pacific region,” he added.
Early on in Biden’s presidency, officials made it clear that the foreign policy priority was meant to be on countering China and increasing the US footprint in the region. As part of this strategy, the US working to boost military cooperation in the region, and signed the new AUKUS military pact with the UK and Australia.
The Biden administration has also been working to strengthen the Quad, an informal alliance that consists of the US, India, Australia, and Japan. Blinken is meeting with officials from the other Quad countries in Melbourne on Friday.
Ahead of the meeting, Blinken insisted the Quad is not primarily meant to counter China. “This is not about standing against anyone in particular,” he said. “It is about standing up for a rules-based order, making sure that we uphold those rules and principles if they’re being challenged.”
But it’s clear that the Quad is about China, and the so-called “rules-based order” is jargon for the US-dominated world order that Washington thinks Beijing is threatening.
After Australia, Blinken is due to visit Fiji, where he plans to reassure Pacific island leaders that the US is committed to the region.
Usually a pivot isn’t just spin…
In Asia its not clear if Blinken has to assure them the US is still there or has to remind the them the US is still there.
“…The US dominated world order…” Well, that’s some bloody scary language…
With this kind of self-delusion, one can easily understand how wars happen…
Joe gives new meaning to the phrase “multi-tasking”… Biden going on tour to reinforce the plan for global domination…
A “rules based order”. Incredibly kinky…
It’s almost like an engraved invitation for someone to try and kick our a—-.
Well done Joe and company…
The Quad is a joke; China is never mentioned.
…from the recent “meeting.”. . .
Joint Statement on Quad Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific
>we reaffirm the Quad’s commitment to supporting Indo Pacific countries’ efforts to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific
>we continue to support ASEAN partners
>we have pledged to donate more than 1.3 billion vaccine doses
> to address regional challenges, including humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR), maritime security, counter-terrorism, countering disinformation and cyber security.
>We are strengthening HADR [Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief] cooperation in the region
>We reiterate the importance of adherence to international law, particularly as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) [which the US is not a member of]
>Quad partners champion the free, open, and inclusive rules-based order rooted in international law
>We will continue to meet annually to deliver as a force for good for the region [sic]. . .here
The ‘Pivot” is still on? Because the US and UK is going to help Oz get a nuclear submarine, say maybe twenty years from now? And we’re talking about Australia, famous for the Canberra class of ships which always break down. Australia is a weak country which is more than three thousand miles away from China, and takes its orders from London and Washington.
Meanwhile, the US has not established any new ‘pivot’ bases anywhere near China, and in fact is reducing the Marine presence on Okinawa, transferring Marines to far-away Hawaii and Guam. The Quad? It isn’t meant to counter China so why talk about it. It adds nothing to the ‘pivot that’s still on,’ in Blinken’s dreams.
None of that matters, so Blinken blah-blahs about a “rules-based order” where China rules, and Blinkey can order egg rolls to go with that.