US President Biden lays groundwork for America’s flipped foreign policy

In his first major speech about the United States’s policy on key international issues, President Joe Biden on Thursday addressed sensitive matters including, Yemen civil war, the ongoing military coup in Myanmar, Russian aggression and the record low acceptance rate of refugees, which were previously swept under the carpet by the former US President Donald Trump’s administration. 

Taking a historical decision, Biden announced that the US will be ending support of Saudi Arabia-led war which has created unrest in Yemen and has already resulted in the displacement of millions of residents, tens of thousands of deaths and has pushed over 16 million people to the edge of deadly famine, according to the UN.

Biden said the US has decided to terminate complete support including the sales of arms to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen which he said, “has created a humanitarian and strategic catastrophe.”

Also Read: Voting system producer files lawsuit against Fox News, Guiliani for defamation

He added that the US is working “to ensure that humanitarian aid is reaching the Yemeni people who are suffering unendurable devastation,” while reaffirming his faith in peace by saying, “This war has to end.”

The US President also talked about the military coup in Myanmar and demanded the freedom of those who were detained, including the country’s democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and called for a “relinquishment of power” by the generals in light of the sanctions which the US is considering to impose on the country. 

International condemnation was led by the US on the military takeover in Mynamar amid fears that the act will put democratic ideas in danger in addition to the 54 million people being pulled back into extreme poverty. 

He said, “There can be no doubt: in a democracy, force should never seek to overrule the will of the people or attempt to erase the outcome of a credible election. The Burmese military should relinquish the power they have seized, release the advocates and activists and officials they have detained, lift the restrictions in telecommunications, and refrain from violence.”

On Thursday, the President also addressed the United State’s refugee admission rate and highlighted his plans to extend the current intake which took a substantial hit under former US President Donald Trump. 

Also Read: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to meet market regulators to discuss GameStop volatility

The Biden administration had already vowed to increase the country’s upper limit of taking in refugees to 125,000 while campaigning for the 2020 US Presidential elections. The current cap is set at 15,000. 

He said, “So today I’m approving an executive order to begin the hard work of restoring our refugee admissions program to help meet the unprecedented global need. It’s going to take time to rebuild what has been so badly damaged, but that’s precisely what we’re going to do.”

Biden also diverted away from the US’s lenient stance toward’s Russia under Trump and said, “We will not hesitate to raise the cost on Russia and defend our vital interest and our people. The days of the United States rolling over… are over,” while addressing the alleged cyber attack and Russian interference in the US elections.