Foreign Policy Update – USA Gov Policy

HONG KONG

Some of the worst news to come out of Asia since the emergence of the Wuhan pandemic is that Hong Kong’s autonomy appears to be coming to an abrupt end. The PRC is forcing the former British colony under a new national security law after bypassing the Hong Kong city legislature. In the 1997 declaration on Hong Kong, Beijing promised 50 years of independent rule as a semi-autonomous region. The governments of the United States, Australia, the UK and Canada issued a joint statement early Friday outlining their deep concern about the direct imposition of very harsh legislation which would curtail Hong Kong people’s liberties and erode Hong Kong’s autonomy.

President Trump on Friday also announced that he has directed his administration to review the full range of agreement since the territory is no longer separate from Beijing. During a press conference at the White House President Trump said he is directing the “administration to begin the process of eliminating policy exemptions that give Hong Kong different and special treatment.” He also noted that he plans to revoke Hong Kong’s “preferential treatment as a separate customs and travel territory from the rest of China.”

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

The President announced that the US is pulling out of the World Health Organization (WHO) due to its mishandling of the Covid-19 virus pandemic. “We will be today terminating our relationship with the World Health Organization and directing those funds to worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs,” Trump said in a statement from the White House. The President said that the WHO is under China’s control and failing to make the reforms within 30 days as requested by the US. Since WHO has refused to commit to making any reforms the US has stopped over $400 million in funding to the UN body.

In an interview this week Secretary of State Pompeo reminded people that the head of the World Health Organization in January said there was no human-to-human transmission of the virus and that there was little risk to the world. Pompeo added that at least since December the organization covered up the facts.

AUSTRALIA

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In a Sunday interview Secretary Pompeo was asked about Australia’s Victoria state, which is considering signing up as part of China’s BRI (Belt and Road Initiative) to earn billions from Beijing. Pompeo said that “every citizen of Australia should know that every one of those Belt and Road projects needs to be looked at incredibly closely…nearly each one of them has some cost to it. There’s often money loaned at concessional rates or conditions placed in the debt documents or government concessions that have to be made to the Chinese Communist Party in order to get those Belt and Road Initiative projects built. Those present real risk – real risk to the people in that region, real risk to your country – and frankly, they build up the capacity of the Chinese Communist Party to do harm in other ways as well.”

IRAN

This week Secretary Pompeo announced his decision to end the sanctions waiver covering all remaining JCPOA-originating nuclear projects in Iran, and also sanctioned two Iranian nuclear officials. The Iranian regime has “continued its nuclear brinkmanship by expanding proliferation-sensitive activities.” According to Brian Hook, Special Representative for Iran and Senior Advisor to Pompeo, this is a “complicated and multifaceted decision.”

On Wednesday, Pompeo terminated the nuclear waiver for the three remaining Iran nuclear-related projects. Hook pointed out that this includes the Arak reactor conversion, the provision of enriched uranium for the Tehran research reactor, and the export of Iran-spent and scrap research reactor fuel. The decision will take effect after a 60-day wind-down.

A senior State Department official said there were basically quite a larger number of projects that had begun under the JCPOA for which US waivers were in place, and those waivers have gradually been taken down one by one with this as the latest step in that progression.

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

Election Day is Only the Beginning, Part 2

There is a stark contrast in foreign affairs between the Biden-Harris record of a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Putin invasion of Ukraine, China’s assault on the Philippine exclusive economic zone, and the widening Middle East catastrophe. The Trump White House archives provides a lengthy list of foreign policy results. “President Trump restored American sovereignty at home and American leadership abroad, partnering with strong and responsible nations to promote security, prosperity, and peace. Instead of sending American troops to fight in endless wars or giving cash to terrorists in countries like Iran, the United States under President Trump used bold, creative diplomacy to secure peace deals with our allies across the world. With the same “peace through strength” foreign policy that President Reagan once used to win the Cold War, President Trump rebuilt American deterrence power to hold our adversaries accountable. Perhaps most important, the Trump Administration reversed Washington’s decades-long, bipartisan refusal to confront China over its unfair trade practices, intellectual property theft, and more. Specifically, the Trump Administration: “Secured a $400 billion increase in defense spending from NATO allies by 2024, as the number of members meeting their minimum financial obligations more than doubled Credited by Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for strengthening NATO Worked to reform and streamline the United Nations and reduced spending by $1.3 billion Allies, including Japan and the Republic of Korea, committed to increase burden-sharing Protected our Second Amendment rights by announcing that the United States will never ratify the UN Arms Trade Treaty Returned 56 hostages and detainees from more than 24 countries Worked to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific region, promoting new investments and expanding American partnerships Advanced peace through strength Withdrew from the one-sided Iran Nuclear Deal and imposed crippling sanctions on the Iranian regime Conducted vigorous enforcement on all sanctions to bring Iran’s oil exports to zero and deny the regime its principal source of revenue First president to meet with a leader of North Korea and the first sitting president to cross the demilitarized zone into North Korea Maintained a maximum pressure campaign and enforced tough sanctions on North Korea while negotiating denuclearization, the release of American hostages, and the return of the remains of American heroes Brokered economic normalization between Serbia and Kosovo, bolstering peace in the Balkans Signed the Hong Kong Autonomy Act and ended the United States’ preferential treatment with Hong Kong to hold China accountable for its infringement on the autonomy of Hong Kong Led allied efforts to defeat the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to control the international telecommunications system Recognized Jerusalem as the true capital of Israel and quickly moved the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem Acknowledged Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights and declared that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are not inconsistent with international law Removed the United States from the United Nations Human Rights Council due to the group’s blatant anti-Israel bias Brokered historic peace agreements between Israel and Arab-Muslim countries, including the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Sudan Brokered a deal for Kosovo to normalize ties and establish diplomatic relations with Israel Announced that Serbia would move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem First American president to address an assembly of leaders from more than 50 Muslim nations, reaching an agreement to fight terrorism in all its forms Established the Etidal Center to combat terrorism in the Middle East in conjunction with the Saudi Arabian government Announced the Vision for Peace Political Plan—a two-state solution that resolves the risks of Palestinian statehood to Israel’s security, marking the first time Israel has agreed to a map and a Palestinian state Released an economic plan to empower the Palestinian people and enhance Palestinian governance through historic private investment Reversed the previous administration’s Cuba policy, canceling the sellout deal with the Communist Castro dictatorship Pledged not to lift sanctions until all political prisoners are freed, freedoms of assembly and expression are respected, all political parties are legalized, and free elections are scheduled Enacted a new policy aimed at preventing American dollars from funding the Cuban regime, including stricter travel restrictions and restrictions on the importation of Cuban alcohol and tobacco Implemented a cap on remittances to Cuba Enabled Americans to file lawsuits against persons and entities that traffic in property confiscated by the Cuban regime First world leader to recognize Juan Guaido as the Interim President of Venezuela and led a diplomatic coalition against the Socialist Dictator of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro Blocked all property of the Venezuelan government in the jurisdiction of the United States Cut off the financial resources of the Maduro regime and sanctioned key sectors of the Venezuelan economy exploited by the regime Brought criminal charges against Nicolas Maduro for his narco-terrorism Imposed stiff sanctions on the Ortega regime in Nicaragua Photo: Trump site