Foreign Policy Update – USA Gov Policy

AFGHANISTAN

Although President Biden admitted this week that the US has been in talks with the Taliban, Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a Sunday interview on Face the Nation contradicted his boss and denied that the US Government is negotiating with the Taliban. When further asked if it was true that Washington had to ask the terrorist organization if Americans could leave, Blinken responded: “They are in control of Kabul. That is the reality. That’s the reality that we have to deal with.” Many analysts in Washington already are calling the withdrawal one of nation’s worst foreign policy disasters in our entire history.

President Biden has been widely criticized for giving a list naming Americans residing in Afghanistan, a so-called hit list by some, to the Taliban terrorist leadership with a “request” that they leave Americans alone while they are preparing to leave Afghanistan. Many of America’s allies are questioning US global leadership, mocking the president, and re-evaluating the value of maintaining or depending on a close relationship with the US.

Government officials in Washington made public statements this week saying that the President determined the US needed to leave Afghanistan to concentrate on great power competition with China. Former National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice responded, saying “China, Russia and Iran have taken our measure. The pictures of the past few days will emblazon an image of America in retreat. Now is the time to reinforce our commitment to Ukraine, Iraq and particularly Taiwan.”

There are over 170 dead and more than 200 injured from the recent bombings at Karzai Airport in Kabul. These numbers may continue to climb in the coming days as many of the injuried are in critical condition and additional attacks are anticipated in Kabul.

GERMANY AND US ALLIES

Armin Laschet, the likely successor to German Chancellor Merkel contradicted Secretary of State Blinken’s assertion that America’s allies are content with the United States keeping its commitments, saying “This is the biggest debacle that NATO has seen since its foundation.” Other nations, including the chairman of the British Parliament’s Foreign Affairs committee openly disagreed with Biden about the Afghan military running away, saying: “To see their commander-in-chief [Biden]call into question the courage of men I fought with, to claim that they ran – it’s shameful. Those who have never fought for the colors they fly should be careful about criticizing those who have.” Throughout the Western world there is shock and disbelief among America’s allies and partners that the Biden Administration failed so badly in Afghanistan.

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When Blinken was asked by a reporter on Sunday if the President knows what is going on with our allies, the Secretary attempted to place the blame on those questioning the Biden Administration, saying: “This is an incredibly emotional time for many of us, and including allies and partners who have been shoulder-to-shoulder with us in Afghanistan for 20 years at high cost to themselves as well as to us.”

SYRIA

Saturday, August 21, marked the eighth anniversary of the chemical attack in Syria in which  the Assad regime released the nerve agent sarin on its own people in the Ghouta district of Damascus, killing more than 1,400 Syrians, many of them children.  In a written statement released by the State Department this week, the US said it will “continue to call upon the Assad regime to fully declare and destroy its chemical weapons program in accordance with its international obligations.” Syrian leaders have not responded to the suggestion from Washington.

ISRAEL

Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. He emphasized the importance of the US-Israel partnership and discussed regional security issues, including Iran. The Secretary and the Prime Minister underscored the strength of the bilateral relationship during this turbulent period and Blinken reiterated the US commitment to Israel’s security.

DARIA NOVAK served in the United States State Department during the Reagan Administration, and currently is on the Board of the American Analysis of News and Media Inc., which publishes usagovpolicy.com and the New York Analysis of Policy and Government. Each Saturday, she presents key updates on U.S. foreign policy from the State Department.

Illustration: Pixabay

Quick Analysis

U.S. Navy Losing Dominance

From the Caribbean to the Mediterranean to the Pacific, the naval forces of Russia and China have challenged the once-dominant position of the United States. On July 18, U.S. Army Gen. Laura J. Richardson, in a speech at the Aspen Institute, warned that Russian warships have been making port visits to Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, and 22 nations in the U.S. Southern Command’s area of responsibility has signed on to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the commander of Southcom told attendees of the Aspen Security Forum. Army Gen. Laura J. Richardson said the nations that have signed on to the Chinese initiative don’t see the investments the U.S. has been making in their countries. “All they see are the Chinese cranes,” she said. “These projects are in the billions of dollars. … They are big-time projects.” Richardson said it would be OK with her if those investments were for doing good in the hemisphere. “But it makes me a little suspicious when it’s in the critical infrastructure.” Critical infrastructure, she said, includes deep-water ports, cybersecurity, energy and space. “I worry about the dual use nature of that. These are state-owned enterprises by a communist government. I worry about the flipping of that to a military application,” Richardson said, referring to China. Regarding the Russian port visits, Richardson said U.S. vessels have been shadowing those vessels to ensure the safety and security of the United States. Also, the Russians continue to make high-level government visits to Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua with their foreign affairs minister and the head of the Russian legislative body, she said, adding that the U.S. could be doing more in its own government exchanges. “I really believe that economic security and national security go hand in hand here in this hemisphere, and we have got to work both of them together very, very quickly,” she said. In the Mediterranean, according to the Bulgarian Military A fleet, including the missile cruiser Varyag and the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, has successfully navigated the Suez Canal, transitioning from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, as confirmed by the Pacific Fleet [PF] on Wednesday. The authoritative GIS Reports notes that “In the crucial Indo-Pacific, the tide has changed dramatically against America. the balance of naval power in the Western Pacific has been altered in favor of the Chinese Navy. For instance, the U.S. Navy went from having a 76-warship advantage over China in 2005 to having a 39-combatant deficiency in 2023, based on similar ship and submarine comparisons. That is a swing of 115 naval platforms in 23 years. This is a strategic trend that will continue uninterrupted for at least the next decade.” Rep. Mike Rogers has previously pointed out that The Biden Administration’s 30-year ship-building plan reduces the Navy’s ability to protect its aircraft-carrier strike groups and eliminate enemy minefields, reduces the Marine Corps’ ability to conduct forcible-entry missions, and reduces by almost 10 percent the Navy’s capacity to launch missiles. Public estimates indicate that China will eventually develop a global force of submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles, posing an obvious risk to the U.S. China’s surface-combatant forces already greatly exceed that of the U.S. Photo: Vessels attached to a flotilla with the navy under the PLA Southern Theater Command sail toward the designated area during a comprehensive combat training exercise in late June, 2024. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Huang Jiacheng and Wang Jian)

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