MATTHEW CONTINETTI: The Biden Doctrine Goes Bust.

Not that defense is a Biden priority. He sent budget proposals to Congress that reduced defense spending, only to be overridden by sober-minded committees of jurisdiction. Under Biden, the U.S. government spends more on debt service than on defense. The armed forces struggle to meet recruitment goals. Threats multiply.

Blinken says that after economics, the administration’s second “pillar of renewal” is strengthening U.S. alliances. Biden deserves credit for welcoming Sweden and Finland into NATO; bolstering the Indo-Pacific “quad” of America, Australia, India, and Japan; and creating AUKUS, a trilateral partnership among Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Skilled diplomacy was required to build out inherited institutions, he argues, and create new ones to balance China. For decades, presidents have said U.S. policy would turn toward East Asia. “The Biden administration,” writes Matthews, “made the pivot happen.”

Let’s not speak too soon. Biden’s diplomacy hasn’t lessened China’s belligerence. China’s intelligence and cyber warfare against the United States go on. The high-altitude surveillance balloon that transited north America in 2023 was a display of Chinese strength. China hasn’t relaxed its grip on Tibetans, Uighurs in Xinjiang, or Hongkongers. Its “no limits” partnership with Russia has deepened, providing Vladimir Putin an economic lifeline that sustains his war machine.

China’s own military buildup is extraordinary. Its harassment and encirclement of Taiwan are increasing. Its naval vessels assert primacy in the South China Sea by ramming Philippine ships. The Philippines is a treaty ally. The United States is pledged to the nation’s defense.

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