As Washington fears that Beijing is outcompeting it in even the tiniest of countries, the Biden administration is rushing to boost long-dormant ties to island nations across the region where China has a strong presence.
to island nations across the region where China has a strong presence. Secretary of State Antony Blinken this week became the first-ever Cabinet official to visit Tonga, dedicating a new U.S. Embassy in this low-lying capital, and other officials are due to fan across Papua New Guinea, Micronesia, Palau and elsewhere in the weeks to come, seeking to close the gap in a region that administration officials acknowledge has gotten “short shrift.
The stakes could be enormous. Despite their small size, each country has an equal vote inside the United Nations. They control fisheries and seabed minerals over a stretch of ocean three times larger than the continental United States. And they sit as beacons in a region that has strategic importance in any conflict involving China.
Blinken’s brief Pacific tour this week also includes stops in New Zealand and Australia for bilateral talks, part of a broader outreach to the region. Earlier this year he visited Papua New Guinea, substituting for Biden after the presidentto return to Washington to negotiate the debt ceiling, a blow to U.S. efforts to signal it takes the region seriously.
“If they’re trying to take over our country, it would seem to look like that. But we haven't really crossed any red line,” he said. “Until there are viable alternatives, we need to live peaceably with them.”The lack of alternatives can be a challenge, with the U.S. open-market economy making it harder for policymakers to channel investments solely for the purpose of furthering U.S. foreign policy aims.
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