Biden defends foreign policy record despite ongoing disasters
4 Min Read
Biden has been criticized relentlessly for being complicit in the war on Gaza, providing "Israel" with diplomatic, economic, and military support.
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Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington on January 10, 2025. (AP)
Outgoing President Joe Biden attempted to improve his foreign policy record on Monday, claiming that US rivals are weaker than when he took office four years ago, despite unsolved international challenges.
A week before handing the office over to Donald Trump, Biden delivered a rare State Department address in which he emphasized his administration's support for Ukraine and "Israel."
Biden stated that the US was "winning the worldwide competition" and would not be eclipsed economically by China, as had been projected.
He asserted, "Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are weaker," adding, "We have not gone to war to make these things happen."
Regarding the war on Gaza, Biden claimed that negotiations were close to reaching an agreement that would release Israeli captives and pause the aggression in the Palestinian Strip to allow for an increase in humanitarian assistance.
He stated, "So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace."
Biden has been criticized relentlessly for being complicit in the war on Gaza, providing "Israel" with diplomatic support and billions of dollars, not to mention weapons for its genocide of the Palestinian people, which has killed over 46,584 Palestinians and left 109,731 injured.
Protesters yelling "war criminal" met Biden outside the State Department on Monday, some holding banners and others splashing crimson liquid resembling blood.
Biden further claimed that "Iran is weaker than it's been in decades," and that US actions "contributed significantly" to this.
Will Biden's blunders in Yemen carry over to Trump?
Last week, Responsible Statecraft cited new reports based on two sources in The Jerusalem Post, saying that the Trump administration may plan to escalate the US military campaign
further against Ansar Allah in Yemen. The report suggests that the Biden administration intends to intensify its bombing campaign before January 21, paving the way for Trump to escalate military actions once he assumes office.
"Trump will not stand for having US Navy ships attacked every day by the Houthis using Iranian missiles. … He will hit the Houthis harder, and he will threaten Iran that if a missile [that] Iran supplied kills an American, Iran will get hit directly," former Trump administration Iran envoy Elliott Abrams said.
Trump's potential escalation in Yemen aligns with his national security team's hawkish tendencies and reflects his approach to Yemen during his previous term in office. Judged by its results, the US-led aggression on Yemen has been a failure, consuming resources without deterring attacks by Ansar Allah on commercial shipping, which they have been carrying out as part of a de facto blockade on the Israeli occupation over the war on Gaza.
In addition to intensifying the bombing campaign, reports suggest the Trump administration may consider reinstating Ansar Allah on the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) list. This move, which was reversed by the Biden administration due to warnings about its humanitarian impact, could further destabilize Yemen. Critics of Biden's reversal have labeled it as a "weakness" and pushed for redesignation.
Trump's history of escalating inherited conflicts, combined with his disregard for congressional oversight in matters of war, raises concerns about the legality and consequences of further military action in Yemen. Escalation is unlikely to achieve significant results and risks worsening the humanitarian crisis while endangering US forces.
The US should focus on ending broader regional conflicts, including the war on Gaza, rather than expanding its military involvement in Yemen, Responsible Statecraft stressed.
