As the United States approaches its 2024 presidential election. The two prominent leaders, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump could greatly change America’s future and its role in the world. The new president will solve the urgent global challenges. This election outcome is also important to maintain the US relations with international countries. The policies of both candidates explore their potential impact on trade, Indo-Pacific strategy, and relations with China.
The Trump administration launched the Free and Open Indo-Pacific initiative. The Biden administration has continued it with slow progress. In 2021, White House coordinator Kurt Campbell found out the reason behind this lag. Biden along with Harris has focused on making strong relationships with Asian nations. The recent defence agreement with Japan and Australia highlighted it. According to this agreement, the nation should prepare for conflicts like China’s invasion of Taiwan.
Due to the largest distance from the region, the US struggles in Asia. Analysts differ on China’s rising influence, with some warning of threats to US dominance, while others see a multipolar future that could limit confrontation.
The key opponents of China are nations, India and Japan. Both of these countries are the close allies of the United. This partnership could challenge China’s influence in the region. No doubut that China is more economically strong than both of these nations. Despite this fact, both India and Japan play an important role in regional investment, trade, and development. However, China holds a strategic advantage because of its control over critical maritime routes like the South China Sea.
The Philippines is the key country that is situated between China and the United States over territory in the South China Sea. The country moved closer to the United States due to the strong actions of China. This shift was pointed out in early 203. It was the time when new American military bases were set up. After this, the tension between China and the United States increased.
Vice President Kamala Harris has very little experience in foreign policy. This lack of practice raises many questions. One of the key queries is how she will handle relations with Asia if wins the 2024 presidential elections.
Recently, Congress passed twenty-five bills aimed at countering the Chinese Communist Party, focusing on technology and trade issues. If former President Trump returns to power, his approach could either continue current policies or shift to his “America First” stance, potentially straining US alliances.
Aginat broad tariffs, Vice President Kamala Harris has taken a stance. According to her, she is “not a protectionist Democrat. ”However, the Biden-Harris administration has maintained the amounts of tariffs that Trump put in place. It is approximately $360 billion and planned to add more. They also took benefit from the US steel and sold it to European buyers, which they didn’t consider a protectionist move. This highlights the mixed strategy. It acknowledged that past trade deals benefited companies more than workers. Harris has bigger aims. She wants to create an “opportunity economy” that greatly supports the middle class.
While they favor American jobs, Biden and Harris are not fully on board with globalization. They withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which hurt American workers by lowering import taxes and supporting harmful manufacturing. The trade war has only slightly changed global supply chains. Biden and Harris’s policies focus on both manufacturing and infrastructure, aiming to boost global competition. Their strategies suggest that domestic policies are crucial for shaping the international trade of manufactured goods, highlighting how interconnected these issues are.
Kamala Harris’s approach to US-China relations is not clear. It mixed competition with working together. According to her opinion, China is a security threat to the US. This is because China has advanced technology. Her “de-risking” has the objective to minimize the reliance on China. At the same time, she wants to keep tariffs and cooperation on issues like climate change. She sees China as the culprit for human rights violations in Xinjiang and Hong Kong. This policy shows that the United States cares about democracy.
However, the Donald Trump approach is confrontational. If Trump is re-elected then cutting ties with China with important industries. His administration is against China and its advanced technology and supports Taiwan. This aggressive strategy could have resulted in more disasters in global relationships.
