Washington's great maneuvers in Asia
Audio 02:07
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is one of the most seasoned diplomats in the US administration.
© AP / Evan Vucci
By: Cyril Payen
5 mins
It is no coincidence that the US administration's very first diplomatic trip this week was to East Asia.
This foreshadows Washington's refocusing on the Far East, even if it means going back after the Trump years and reconnecting with a doctrine dear to Barack Obama.
Are these the beginnings of a new all-out war with China?
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In any case, if the doctrine of the Obama administration in the 2010s took as its symbol the "pivot" gesture well known to basketball fans, the Biden style, he, in diplomacy, holds more, against all expectations, of uppercut.
Moreover, for this first trip to the allies in Japan, Korea, then in Alaska of Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, one of the most seasoned diplomats in the American administration, the experts were already planning.
A way to sharpen the strategy of the Americans in the region, but also, no more and no less, the first round of an international boxing match between Washington and Beijing.
• What are the themes of the negotiations between Chinese and Americans?
The reasons for getting along between the two powers are inversely proportional to those which oppose them.
In Tokyo, the American clan clearly warned: "
If necessary,
" said the secretary of state
, "we will push back China if it uses coercion or aggression to achieve its ends.
Understand: we are committed to defending the issue of freedoms in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Xinjiang against the Uyghurs, but also in Tibet as much as the North Korean denuclearization program, Chinese precinct, will not suffer any compromise.
Another preserve of Beijing: Burma.
A good connoisseur of the issue Anthony Blinken has undoubtedly also used his regional networks to try to wring the arm of the Chinese as the country quickly slides into civil war.
• Towards the expected confrontation in Alaska?
The violence, in substance and in form, of the diplomatic clash in Anchorage between the American and Chinese delegations at the end of the week was therefore only a half-surprise.
Washington has understood this well and to tackle the differences head-on, from a position of strength, in this commercial, strategic and ideological struggle that Donald Trump has never assimilated.
America is back in Asia, even if it means gradually turning its back on the Middle East, Afghanistan or the Sahel.
Although strong in its "supposed" victory against the Covid-19 and its growth, convinced of its role to play in the face of "
the inexorable decline of American influence
", China was forced to tackle the defensive first. round of this battle of the great powers.
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