The Foreign Service Journal, April 2021

18 APRIL 2021 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Contemporary Quote So here’s our plan. First, we will stop COVID-19 and strengthen global health security. Second, we will turn around the economic crisis and build a more stable, inclusive global economy. Third, we will renew democracy, because it’s under threat. Fourth, we will work to create a humane and effec- tive immigration system. Fifth, we will revitalize our ties with our allies and partners. Sixth, we will tackle the climate crisis and drive a green energy revolution. Seventh, we will secure our leadership in technology. And eighth, we will manage the biggest geopolitical test of the 21st century: our relationship with China. —Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his March 3 speech, “ A Foreign Policy for the American People.” Biden, Blinken Signal Foreign Policy Changes P resident Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have signaled sweeping foreign policy changes. “The message I want the world to hear today: America is back. America is back. Diplomacy is back at the center of our foreign policy,” Biden said during Feb. 4 remarks at the State Department. The president said that America’s leadership must meet the challenges of “advancing authoritarianism” in the world, “including the growing ambitions of China to rival the United States and the determination of Russia to damage and disrupt our democracy.” In hot spots around the globe, the new administration is pointing to new approaches and moving away from some Trump administration policies. In his speech at the State Depart- ment, President Biden announced that the United States and Russia have agreed to extend the New START arms treaty for five years, “preserving the only remaining treaty between our countries safeguard- ing nuclear stability.” Biden declared that the United States was ending support for Saudi-led offensive operations in the war in Yemen, including arms sales. On Feb. 5, State announced that Secretary Blinken was lifting the foreign terrorist designation for- mer Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had placed on Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Blinken appointed FSO Tim Lend- erking as special envoy for Yemen. In a Feb. 16 interview on NPR, Blinken explained: “We are now doubling down on diplomacy to try to end that horrific war in Yemen that’s helped produce what is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.” On Jan. 26, the Biden administration announced it would restore U.S. relation s with the Palestinians, which had been cut off during the Trump administration. Richard Mills, then acting U.S. ambas- sador to the United Nations, reaffirmed U.S. support for the two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians. Mills added that the United States would renew economic and humanitar- ian aid to the Palestinians and reopen diplomatic missions shut down by the Trump administration, such as the Pal- estine Liberation Office in Washington, D.C., and the consulate general in Jerusa- lem, which dealt with Palestinian affairs. Signaling renewed attention to climate change issues, President Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry as his climate envoy, and on Feb. 19 the U.S. officially rejoined the Paris Agreement. On Feb. 22, Secretary Blinken said the United States will try to strengthen the agreement between world powers and Iran aimed at curbing its nuclear pro- gram, CNBC reported. Blinken said that if Iran comes back into “strict compliance” with the 2015 pact, the Biden admin- istration will do the same. The Trump administration had pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018. “The United States remains commit- ted to ensuring that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon,” Blinken told the U.N.- sponsored Conference on Disarmament in Geneva. “Diplomacy is the best path to achieve that goal.” State Adds Chief Diversity Officer T he State Department will create a new chief diversity and inclusion (D&I) officer position, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in a state- ment on Feb. 24. This officer—not named in the statement—will report directly to the Secretary. “Our goal is to incorporate diversity and inclusion into the department’s work at every level,” Blinken said. He directed all State Department bureaus to designate an existing deputy assistant secretary to support that bureau’s diversity and inclu- sion efforts, and to serve on a new D&I Leadership Council bringing senior lead- ers together to push for the goals outlined in a new, updated Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan that will be released soon. “Diversity and inclusion make us stronger, smarter, more creative, and more innovative,” Blinken said. “And our diversity gives us a significant competi- tive advantage on the world stage. This is something that the president, the vice president and I firmly believe.”