Biden's security policy: ambitions and political reality

Authors:

  • Björn Ottosson
  • Niklas Rossbach

Publish date: 2021-07-01

Report number: FOI-R--5177--SE

Pages: 72

Written in: Swedish

Keywords:

  • USA
  • presidents
  • Joe Biden
  • congress
  • international relations
  • strategy
  • security policy
  • domestic politics
  • foreign policy
  • defence policy
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • EU
  • Middle East
  • NATO
  • Russia

Abstract

This report provides an overview of the Biden administration's foreign and security policy, including how it may evolve over the coming four years. The study covers both the administration's ambitions and goals as well as the resulting foreign and security policy, after the passage through the US political system. Based mainly on the administration´s statements, the report demonstrates that the administration´s strategy, with regard to threats, goals, and means, is in line with the internationalist tradition in US foreign policy. There is continuity with the preceding Trump administration in terms of US threat perceptions, but less so concerning goals and means. The Biden administration emphasises democracy, universal norms, multilateralism, international institutions, and diplomacy. The report shows that there is an interplay between foreign and domestic politics, and President Biden's internationalist foreign policy is constrained by several domestic factors. There is a risk that Biden's ambitious goals will not be matched with corresponding resources, a recurrent phenomenon in US foreign policy. If this happens, it could widen the gulf between the administration´s rhetoric and actual US commitments. However, the study also underscores that the span of outcomes is wide and that domestic and international events can have a strong influence on US foreign policy.