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Biden defends foreign policy record despite ongoing crises

Biden said he had helped Israel defeat adversaries including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both backed by Iran. The US president also hailed Washington's support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024. 

Reuters
Washington
Tue, January 14, 2025

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Biden defends foreign policy record despite ongoing crises United States President Joe Biden smiles during a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto in the Oval Office of the White House on Nov. 12, 2024 in Washington, DC. The two leaders met to discuss the strengthening of US-Indonesian cooperation as part of the comprehensive strategic partnership. (AFP/Brendan Smialowski)

O

utgoing President Joe Biden sought to burnish his foreign policy record on Monday and said US adversaries are weaker than when he took office four years ago despite global crises that remain unresolved.

A week before handing over to President-elect Donald Trump, Biden addressed US diplomats at the State Department and touted his administration's backing for Ukraine against Russia's 2022 invasion and for Israel's wars in the Middle East.

Biden said the United States was "winning the worldwide competition" and would not be surpassed economically by China as had been predicted, while Russia and Iran have been weakened by wars without direct US involvement.

"Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are weaker," Biden said. "We have not gone to war to make these things happen."

While wars continue to rage in Ukraine and the Middle East, officials hope a deal between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas can be reached before Biden departs the White House on Jan. 20.

Biden said negotiators were close to reaching a deal that would free hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and halt the fighting in the Palestinian enclave to allow a surge of humanitarian aid.

"So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace, a right to determine their own futures. Israel deserves peace and real security. The hostages and their families deserve to be reunited," Biden said. "And so we're working urgently to close this deal."

Biden has faced criticism for providing Israel with weapons and diplomatic support, since the latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's subsequent military assault on Gaza has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry, while also drawing accusations of genocide in a World Court case brought by South Africa and of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the allegations. The assault has displaced nearly Gaza's entire 2.3 million population and drawn the concern of the world's main hunger monitor.

Protesters shouting “war criminal” greeted Biden outside the State Department on Monday, some with signs and some throwing red liquid intended to look like blood.

Biden said he had helped Israel defeat adversaries including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both backed by Iran. The US president also hailed Washington's support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024. 

"All told, Iran is weaker than it's been in decades," he added, noting the collapse of the Syrian Assad government. "There's no question that our actions contributed significantly."

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