Despite entering office under an “America First” banner that seemed to herald a new era of isolationism, former President Donald Trump made less dramatic shifts on U.S. security policy than anticipated. He did manage to withdraw U.S. forces from Somalia, but only to see them restationed elsewhere in the region. Meanwhile, U.S. troops were still deployed in Syria and Afghanistan when he left office. And though he hinted at military interventions in Venezuela and Iran, Trump proved reluctant to commit U.S. forces to another conflict. His major legacy, in fact, may be the damage he did to relationships with long-standing allies and partners, including Europe, South Korea and Japan.
This explains why President Joe Biden made it a priority to reassure European allies of America’s ongoing security commitments, promising them shortly after taking office, “America is back. The trans-Atlantic alliance is back.” That may not offer European leaders the comfort Biden thinks it will. In the wake of Trump’s presidency and facing challenges that include a revanchist Russia as well as domestic and international terror threats, Europe is eager to assert its autonomy. A key question for the Biden presidency is whether a more autonomous Europe will be a more useful partner to the U.S., or simply further widen the gulf Trump created between the allies.
On Afghanistan, Biden announced in April that he would withdraw the 2,500 U.S. troops that remained there, with the final troops now set to leave by July. It is a fateful decision, as America’s withdrawal is all but certain to result in a pitched battle for control of the country. Even as the Biden administration reckons with that possibility, U.S. diplomats are attempting to reenergize talks between Kabul and the Taliban, while drawing a wider pool of regional stakeholders into the negotiations.
Trump’s legacy has also hung over Biden’s other early security moves, including diplomatic reengagement with the regime in Iran. Trump’s maximum pressure approach, which included abandoning the 2015 deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program, backfired, as Tehran responded by expanding its nuclear activities and assuming a more aggressive regional posture. Biden has jumpstarted multilateral diplomacy in an effort to revive the nuclear deal, but the outcome of those talks remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, in addition to these legacy issues, Biden must work to deepen and expand America’s security partnerships in the face of the greatest challenge to U.S. global leadership since the end of the Cold War: an increasingly assertive China. That means continuing to shore up ties with America’s Asian allies, while also seeking to solidify nascent partnerships with regional powers—particularly India, but also Vietnam. That won’t be easy, given their reluctance to antagonize China, which remains a principal trade partner for many.
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