President Joe Biden on Friday criticized former President Donald Trump’s approach to foreign policy, with his remarks coming as he held a joint press conference with the leaders of Japan and South Korea to tout their new security agreements.
“There’s not much of anything I agree on with my predecessor on foreign policy. His ‘America First’ policy — walking away from the rest of the world — has made us weaker, not stronger,” Biden said, when he was asked by a reporter about how Trump, the frontrunner in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, could end up scrapping commitments to allies.
Biden said the new agreements between the U.S., Japan and South Korea are “going to benefit all our countries.”
Key Words: Biden official touts ‘new era’ for alliance with Japan and South Korea, but says it’s ‘not a NATO for the Pacific’
The joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol followed a trilateral summit at Camp David.
The Camp David meeting was the first time Biden hosted world leaders at the Maryland presidential retreat, which is about an hour’s drive northwest of the White House.
China has blasted the stronger ties between the U.S., Japan and South Korea. Meanwhile, a joint statement from the U.S., Japan and South Korea criticized some of China’s moves.
“Recalling the publicly announced position of each of our countries regarding the dangerous and aggressive behavior supporting unlawful maritime claims that we have recently witnessed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the South China Sea, we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the waters of the Indo-Pacific,” said the statement, which was issued Friday.
Related: China appears to be building airstrip on disputed South China Sea island
U.S. stocks
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closed mostly lower Friday and with losses for the week, hurt in part by a rise in bond yields and China’s economic woes.
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