On Tuesday, German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported that insiders say process in the EU-China negotiations on the investment agreement might possibly come this week, and that there is a ‘cautious confidence’ that an agreement may be reached.
I don't expect open confrontations with China from the Biden administration because Biden believes in quiet diplomacy, and does not tweet. Biden also understands that the US is in a much weaker position with China, Russia than it was in 2016, and has repeatedly talked about the importance of "leverage", which both China and Russia understand very well. In other words, when the US is weak when it comes to power and leverage, it is more advantageous to the US to become quiet and use quiet diplomacy, instead of the bluster and tweets which are Trump's favorite tool. In practical terms, this will mean that Australia is on its own.
The other factor is that the US is deeply internally divided, and has many domestic issues which cannot be easily resolved. The source of any US administration's leverage is the ability to speak with one voice, and being backed by Congress when the President pronounces policy. Biden does not have that, and rebuilding it will be a long and slow task when the Republicans are a leading party flirting with white supremacy.
On Tuesday, German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported that insiders say process in the EU-China negotiations on the investment agreement might possibly come this week, and that there is a ‘cautious confidence’ that an agreement may be reached.
Two working days left in this week in Europe!
https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/international/wirtschaftspolitik-investitionsabkommen-eu-und-china-verhandeln-unter-hochdruck-ueber-streitpunkte/26719438.html
I don't expect open confrontations with China from the Biden administration because Biden believes in quiet diplomacy, and does not tweet. Biden also understands that the US is in a much weaker position with China, Russia than it was in 2016, and has repeatedly talked about the importance of "leverage", which both China and Russia understand very well. In other words, when the US is weak when it comes to power and leverage, it is more advantageous to the US to become quiet and use quiet diplomacy, instead of the bluster and tweets which are Trump's favorite tool. In practical terms, this will mean that Australia is on its own.
The other factor is that the US is deeply internally divided, and has many domestic issues which cannot be easily resolved. The source of any US administration's leverage is the ability to speak with one voice, and being backed by Congress when the President pronounces policy. Biden does not have that, and rebuilding it will be a long and slow task when the Republicans are a leading party flirting with white supremacy.