What Are Trump, Biden Saying about US Foreign Policy?

 

American President Donald Trump¹ and former Vice² President Joe Biden have sharply different ideas about United States foreign policy.

In 2016, Trump won the presidency³ calling for "America First" and then quickly withdrew the U.S. from several international agreements. Biden has said that as president he would welcome a return to international cooperation.

Here are some of the major areas the two U.S. presidential candidates have discussed during the campaign.

NATO

Trump has demanded that members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, increase their defense⁴ spending. Before Trump took office, some NATO members were meeting the spending target set in 2014, but many were not.

Earlier this year, Trump criticized Germany for not spending enough on defense. He announced that the U.S. would withdraw 12,000 troops from Germany. The withdrawal⁵, however, will take months of planning and years to execute.

During the presidential campaign, Biden called NATO "the single most consequential⁶ alliance in the history of the United States." He warned it "will fall apart" if Trump wins re-election. The former vice president has said he wants to make good relations with international partnerships⁷ important.

Russia

Biden has said he would question Russian President Vladimir Putin about Russia's interference in U.S. elections and other activities. Some of the activities, Biden said, include reported Russian money in exchange for killing⁹ American troops and efforts to weaken the NATO alliance.

"I don't understand why this president is unwilling¹⁰ to take on Putin...," Biden said.

Trump has dismissed U.S. intelligence's judgement that Russia interfered¹¹ in the 2016 presidential election. He pointed¹² to U.S. sanctions on Russia as evidence of his administration's strength.

"There has been nobody tougher on Russia than Donald Trump," the president said.

Iran

Biden was vice president when the U.S. joined five other world powers to sign the 2015 agreement that limited Iran's nuclear program in exchange for easing sanctions.

Trump withdrew from the agreement, calling it "the worst deal ever negotiated." He placed new sanctions on Iran that have hurt the country's economy. Iran has continued its push to develop its nuclear program.

Biden says he would seek to rejoin the deal.

Israel

Both candidates support a two-state solution in peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians.

Trump fulfilled a campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Biden has criticized that move, but does not plan to change it. He proposes opening a U.S. consulate¹³ in East Jerusalem to engage with the Palestinians.

Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, Trump's administration reached an agreement with Taliban militants¹⁴ that calls for U.S troops to leave the country by the middle of 2021.

Biden has expressed that he wants to make changes based on conditions on the ground.

North Korea

Trump held three meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The meetings were part of an effort to get North Korea to give up its nuclear program. The talks did not result in any solid agreements.

Biden's position is that he would not meet with Kim without preconditions. A Biden administration plan would be to use the pressure of sanctions to push Kim to negotiate.

Africa

On the issue of Africa, Biden proposes ending travel bans that Trump put in place when he first took office. The travel restrictions¹⁵ target several majority Muslim nations including Nigeria, Sudan and Somalia which struggle with identified terror threats. Trump defended the bans as necessary for national security.

Both candidates support a push for economic development in their plans for relations with African nations. They both propose working with Africa's young leaders and Africans living the United States.

Central America

In Central America, Trump's administration reached agreements in 2019 with Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. The agreements require migrants to first seek asylum¹⁶ in those countries. If they arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border without having done so, they will be sent back. Similar agreements with other nations would be a goal in a second Trump term.

Biden has criticized what he calls "immigration policies that seek to undo¹⁷ our asylum and refugee laws." He said he would provide aid to Central America in an effort to pressure the governments to reduce the number of migrants traveling north.

Refugees

Under the Trump administration, the number of refugees admitted to the U.S. has dropped. This year it is set at 15,000. The U.S. State Department said the latest limit is necessary for the "safety and well-being¹⁸ of Americans, especially in light of the ongoing¹⁹ COVID-19 pandemic."

During the last year of the administration of President Barack Obama the limit was set at 85,000. Biden has promised to sharply increase the limit to 125,000.

International organizations

Trump has moved away from several international efforts and some organizations. He withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate, a plan to control rising temperatures by placing restrictions on developed countries. He also pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership⁸, or TPP, trade deal. The president said it was a bad deal for the country. The administration has also cut financial support for the World Health Organization, WHO.

Biden supported both the Paris climate deal and the TPP during his time as vice president and would seek to rejoin them. The TPP is now called the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership. Its biggest member is Japan. Biden also says he would go back to supporting the WHO.

Words in This Story

consequential –adj. important

tariff²⁰ - n. a tax on goods coming into or leaving a country

phase – n. a part or step in a process

sanctions – n. -actions taken to force a country to obey international laws by limiting trade with that country or cutting off aid

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

6 consequential   

adj.作为结果的，间接的；重要的

参考例句：

• She was injured and suffered a consequential loss of earnings.她受了伤因而收入受损。
• This new transformation is at least as consequential as that one was.这一新的转变至少和那次一样重要。

7 partnerships   

n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系

参考例句：

• Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。 来自辞典例句

8 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

9 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

10 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

11 interfered   

v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉

参考例句：

• Complete absorption in sports interfered with his studies. 专注于运动妨碍了他的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am not going to be interfered with. 我不想别人干扰我的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

13 consulate   

n.领事馆

参考例句：

• The Spanish consulate is the large white building opposite the bank.西班牙领事馆是银行对面的那栋高大的白色建筑物。
• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。

14 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

15 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

16 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

17 undo   

vt.解开，松开；取消，撤销

参考例句：

• His pride will undo him some day.他的傲慢总有一天会毁了他。
• I managed secretly to undo a corner of the parcel.我悄悄地设法解开了包裹的一角。

18 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

19 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

20 tariff   

n.关税，税率；(旅馆、饭店等)价目表，收费表

参考例句：

• There is a very high tariff on jewelry.宝石类的关税率很高。
• The government is going to lower the tariff on importing cars.政府打算降低进口汽车的关税。