Joe Biden to stress US refocus on ‘rules-based’ global issues in speech to United Nations

Name: US, UK, Australia announce ‘historic’ military partnership in Pacific
Uploaded: 2021-09-20T20:54:31.000Z
Duration: 3 min 51 s
Description: US, UK, Australia announce ‘historic’ military partnership in Pacific

The US president is open to meeting with Chinese counterparts in New York, but it is believed they will be attending the General Assembly session virtually

UN secretary general warns about risks of a ‘new Cold War’ but American officials disagree

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International flags fly outside the United Nations headquarters in New York on Monday. Photo: Bloomberg

Mark Magnierin New York

Published: 4:54am, 21 Sep 2021Updated: 5:59am, 21 Sep 2021

In a speech to the United Nations on Tuesday, US President Joe Biden will emphasise that America is focused on issues that signal its return to the global stage and that effectively counter China, senior officials say, now that it can shift gears after its withdrawal from Afghanistan.

These include a rules-based approach to trade, technology, “non-corrupted” infrastructure and vigorous competition with “great powers”, they said. But they added that the administration was also open to meeting with Chinese counterparts on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly this week in New York.

“I believe that the Chinese are going to be mostly attending virtually,” said Erica Barks-Ruggles, senior bureau official with the State Department’s Bureau of International Organization Affairs. “I do not have a virtual [bilateral meeting] on the schedule at this point. That doesn’t mean it might not pop up.”

US officials also disagreed with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s warning on Monday that Washington and Beijing risked a “new Cold War” given their many areas of potential confrontation, according to Associated Press.

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US, UK, Australia announce ‘historic’ military partnership in Pacific

“President Biden will communicate tomorrow [that] he does not believe in the notion of the new Cold War with the world divided into blocs,” said a senior US official, briefing reporters on background. “He believes in vigorous, intensive, principled competition that does not tip over into conflict. And if you look at the readout of his call with President Xi Jinping several days ago, you will see exactly that message.”