Biden declares world at ‘inflection point’ amid crises – KIRO 7 News Seattle

UNITED NATIONS – (AP) – President Joe Biden used his first address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to declare that the world is at a “turning point in history” and must act quickly and cooperatively to address the festering problems of the COVID. address -19 pandemic, climate change and human rights abuses.

Amid mounting tensions in China, Biden also stated that the US “does not want a new Cold War”.

Without directly mentioning China, Biden admitted growing concerns about rising tensions between the two nations. But he said, “We are not looking for a new Cold War or a world that is divided into rigid blocks.”

The president took note of his decision to end America’s longest war in Afghanistan last month and set the table for his administration to draw US attention to intense diplomacy without a lack of crises around the world. He said he was driven by the belief that “in order to deliver for our own people, we must also deal intensively with the rest of the world”.

“We ended 20 years of conflict in Afghanistan,” said Biden. “And as we end this period of relentless war, we are opening a new era of relentless diplomacy by harnessing the power of our development aid to invest in new ways to uplift people around the world.”

Biden, who arrived in New York on Monday evening to meet with Secretary General Antonio Guterres ahead of Tuesday’s speech, fully supported the panel’s relevance and ambition at a difficult moment in history.

The president made brief remarks on his mantra that “America is back” early in his meeting with Guterres – a phrase that has become an abbreviation for the president to embody his promise to take a dramatically different path with allies Predecessor Donald Trump. In his remarks, he stated that the United States was “back at the table”.

“We will not only lead by example of our power, but God willing by the power of our example,” said Biden on Monday evening.

But the president faced a healthy level of skepticism from allies during his week of senior diplomacy. In the first months of his presidency there were a number of difficult moments with friendly nations that after four years of Trump’s foreign policy approach “America first” expected a stronger cooperation from Biden.

Eight months after his presidency, Biden was out of alignment with allies on the chaotic end of the US war in Afghanistan. He has faced disagreements over how to share coronavirus vaccines with developing countries and pandemic travel restrictions. And there are questions about how best to respond to China’s military and economic moves.

Biden is also in the midst of a new diplomatic battle with France, the United States’ oldest ally, after announcing plans – along with Britain – to equip Australia with nuclear submarines. The move is intended to give Australia enhanced patrol capabilities in the Pacific amid growing concerns about the Chinese military’s increasingly aggressive tactics, but it has a French defense deal worth at least $ 66 billion to sell diesel-powered submarines to Australia on the Turned upside down.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Monday that there had been a “crisis of confidence” with the US as a result of the incident.

Biden downplayed tensions with France. When he got to the UN on Tuesday, Biden asked by a reporter how he was going to fix relations with the French and replied simply, “You are great.”

Prior to Biden’s arrival, EU Council President Charles Michel sharply criticized the Biden government for “leaving Europe out of the game in the Indo-Pacific region” and for ignoring the underlying elements of the transatlantic alliance – transparency and loyalty – when it leaves Afghanistan got and the announcement of the US-UK-Australia alliance.

Despite these differences, Biden hoped to use his General Assembly speech this week, as well as a series of one-on-one and larger meetings with world leaders, to represent American leadership on the world stage.

“There are disagreements, including when we disagree with the decisions of other countries, the decision points when countries disagree with the decisions we make,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki. “But the bigger point here … is that we are committed to these alliances and that always requires the work of every president, every global leader.”

In an interview prior to his meeting with Biden, Guterres told The Associated Press that he was concerned about the “utterly dysfunctional” relationship between the US and China and that it could lead to a new Cold War. Psaki said the government disagreed with the assessment, adding that the US-China relationship was “not a conflict, but a competition”.

The secretary-general did not leave his concerns about US-China tensions behind as he addressed leaders at the opening of the meeting on Tuesday. “It will be impossible to tackle dramatic economic and development challenges while the world’s two largest economies are at odds”

Biden placed great emphasis on the need for world leaders to work together on the COVID-19 pandemic, meet past commitments to tackle climate change, stave off emerging technology issues, and cement trade rules.

“We will choose to build a better future. We, you and I, we have the will and the ability to make them better. Ladies and gentlemen, we cannot afford to waste any more time. … We can do this.”

The Biden government announced on Monday plans to ease travel restrictions on foreign travelers to the United States from November. The US has largely restricted travel by non-US citizens from Europe since the beginning of the pandemic, an issue that had become a point of contention in transatlantic relations.

The new rules will allow foreigners if they have proof of vaccination and a negative COVID-19 test, the White House said on Monday.

Biden planned to limit his time at the United Nations due to concerns about the coronavirus. He was scheduled to meet Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in New York before moving the rest of the week’s diplomacy to virtual and Washington settings.

A COVID-19 virtual summit hosted by Biden on Wednesday will urge leaders to strengthen vaccine exchange commitments, address oxygen starvation around the world, and address other critical issues related to a pandemic deal.

The President is also due to meet British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the White House on Tuesday and invite the Prime Ministers of Australia, India and Japan – part of a Pacific alliance known as the “Quad” – to Washington for Friday. In addition to meeting the quad leaders, Biden will have one-on-one talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

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Madhani reported from Washington. Associated Press authors Jonathan Lemire of New York and Edith Lederer of the United Nations contributed to this report.

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