It is almost over a month since the 100 day-timeline for the “Restore Back America” pledge President Joe Biden took at his inauguration. Within this short span, he has delivered on his promise of elevating America’s stature in the world and pulled the US back from being overwhelmed by a calamitous pandemic bout and suffering from an erosion of national image globally, to gradually opening of the country and reclaiming its global position. Think tank experts and those watching from close have taken note of this positive change and concur that the US is again talking and acting as the leader of the free world.
Of all the statements made by Joe Biden upon winning perhaps the most bitterly fought Presidential elections in the US history, a simple phrase captured the imagination of both an internally divided nation and a global community missing the US leadership. When Biden said “America is back”, he gave voice to millions of American voters and simultaneously reassured allies and partners across the world, which had spent the previous four years trying to decipher the US policies and posture on the global strategic chessboard. While individual pieces of Trump’s foreign and security policies were not all bad, the unpredictability of his administration on key issues ranging from the US force posture in East Asia to policies on dealing with Russia and China had hurt both the interests of the US and its allies on the one hand and emboldened the Chinese to further coerce its neighbours and consolidate its regional hegemony on the other.
Looking back, in his first few months in office, Biden has lived up to its message. He has manned the key State Department posts with extremely competent people, opened negotiations with European and Asian allies on ways and means to manage emerging challenges, confronted Russia for its aggressive policies in both Ukraine and the Middle East, and called out Chinese threats in Asia, the same way President Trump was vocal about but with a difference.
While keeping the military pressure on China as his predecessor, President Biden Administration is also exploring cooperation and engagement with Beijing on softer issues like climate change and nonproliferation, leaving room for cushion amidst the worsening diplomatic ties between the two nations.
He has continued Trump’s policy of pursuing the Quad initiative and elevated its stature by convening the first summit of Quad leaders within the first hundred days in office. The first in-person summit of Quad leaders is said to be in the works now. Broadly, his policies have been highly pragmatic and aimed at broadcasting to US partners, and adversaries, that the US is firmly committed to its long term policies on international engagements, its promises and its partnerships. From shipping emergency health care supplies to India and providing vaccines to South Korea, to helping many more nations battling the pandemic, experts rightly say that Biden has put America “back on rails” and making corporate America come back from “remote work mode” to in-person finally in many offices now.
Aparna Pande, Director in Hudson Institute and an expert on India-US affairs says: “The most striking difference is that (in President Biden and his administration’s own words) ‘America is back’ and is once again involved in world affairs, and that the US has abandoned isolationism. Further, the US is once again strengthening its alliances and partnerships with countries around the world, from Europe to the Indo Pacific. The US is engaging with Russia and China, its global rivals, but is not shying away from openly referring to areas of divergence and also harsh truths.”
Frank Islam, a strong Democrat supporter and a top Indian diaspora name, says: “The most visible image is that America cares about all of its citizens —most especially those who are disadvantaged and discriminated against. All three of the plans — Rescue, Jobs and Families — of the Build Back Better agenda — are targeted at them. The former President (Donald Trump) only cared about himself.”
However, Biden has scored most where President Trump foundered and got the maximum public ire — dealing with the pandemic. America is unmasked and returning to normal with most institutions and public places including tourist attractions opening to the public, and so is the nightlife in cities. India is missing that these days. Perhaps a timely vaccination would have kept us close to the US recovery graph as India slipped in the months where the former got to a normal state with Biden’s ‘maximum vaccination drive’. The preparedness and planning that went into beating the pandemic to let America stand again is a lesson for Indian bureaucracy, health ministry babus and state governments on how not to let politics prevail over prevention in beating a pandemic like Covid-19.
Pande says: “The Biden administration has managed to turn things around so that almost 40 % of Americans are fully vaccinated, the country is slowly reopening, and the economy is starting to grow as well. This sends a message to those around the world that the US still has the resources and capability, as long as it has the leadership, to quickly recover from any catastrophe. Also, now that the US is doing better, the Biden administration is sending vaccines and other assistance to other countries, especially India. Islam, who has worked closely with the Democrats for decades as a campaigner, adds: “President Biden is re-establishing America’s place as a world leader and defender of democracy. His convening of the climate change summit on Earth day demonstrated that. He is providing pandemic aid to India as well as his intervention to bring about a cease-fire to the Israel-Hamas conflict are evidence of America’s concern for all nations and nationalities. I am confident President Biden will do much more going forward.”
From India point, the Biden-Modi relations have gone beyond diplomatic scepticism and rumour milling in the DC circuit at the time of his inauguration. In fact, it is more firm, business-like and mutually strategic for both nations under Biden than it was under Trump if one sees from the point of China threat, Quad grouping and fighting the Covid pandemic.
Pande says: “This is something I had said and written about that under the Biden administration India’s relations will be strategic and stronger than before as President Biden has a deep affinity with India and personally believes in strong US-India ties. In 2006, as Chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee, then-Senator Biden had spoken of ties with India being one of the key relationships for the US. He continued this as Vice President and even during his presidential campaign championed these ties.”
Today’s geopolitical reality is that with the peer rivalry between the US and China, a strong partnership with India is critical to the US national security interests. This is reflected in the strengthening of the Indo Pacific and Quad under Biden administration, says Pande an expert on India-US affairs and South Asia.
Islam added, “even though most view Joe Biden as a pragmatic moderate, he has definitely ‘stepped up’ himself in terms of boldness since he has been president. He has demonstrated through his words, deeds, and plans that building back better was not a campaign slogan or an idle promise. It has been a pledge to perform which has been honoured through the introduction of the Build Back Better Agenda (Agenda). The Agenda has been advanced with the recognition that government is not the problem. Government can be a problem solver. Specifically, the federal government can play a lead role in stimulating the revitalisation of the nation’s economy and democracy.”
Biden has surely started to change American diplomacy and domestic politics!
The Biden administration has managed to turn things around so that almost 40% of Americans are fully vaccinated, the country is slowly reopening, and the economy is starting to grow as well. This sends a message to those around the world that the US still has the resources and capability, as long as it has the leadership, to quickly recover from any catastrophe.
