An off-script Biden works to erase Trump’s legacy in Asia

Tokyo
CNN
 — 

When President Joe Biden stated unequivocally Monday he was willing to intervene militarily to defend Taiwan against a Chinese attack, it was not the first time this city has seen a US president catch his national security aides off guard.

It was in exactly the same gilt-trimmed room at the Akasaka Palace in 2019 that President Donald Trump told a news conference he was not “personally bothered” by North Korean short-range missile launches – a sentiment that awkwardly put him at odds with his host, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was standing three feet away and whose country lies within those weapons’ limits.

Each man’s comment caused ripples of surprise to cross the faces of his team seated nearby, including national security advisers and senior diplomats. Afterward, attempts were made by both men’s staffers to clarify.

Coming almost exactly three years apart, the two moments neatly highlight certain stylistic similarities between the current President and his predecessor.

Yet as Biden departs Asia after a visit darkened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the moments also expose the sometimes-dramatic steps the current President is willing to take to show the world that American obligations and leadership have outlasted Trump’s tenure.

If anything, Biden’s penchant for offering a more aggressive position than his government is willing to officially adopt reflects a desire to thoroughly erase the lingering memories of Trump, swinging the pendulum so far in another direction that allies are left with little doubt of his views – even as attempts by his team to explain them muddy things further.

Monday wasn’t the first time Biden has appeared to upend stated US policy. The last time he was abroad, he punctuated a visit to Poland by declaring Russian President Vladimir Putin “cannot remain in power.” He accused Putin of being a war criminal and committing genocide before either were officially declared by the State Department.

Even his comment on Taiwan this week was not the first time of his presidency that Biden prompted a scramble to confirm the United States was not suddenly shifting its policy. It was the third.

Afterward, a White House official said US policy remained the same, and Biden himself told reporters a day later the American policy of strategic ambiguity remained in place.

Yet it was clear from Biden’s remarks that at least in the broader global environment, something has changed: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As he toured Asia this week, it was evident the calculus toward China has shifted as that war grinds ahead.

“The idea (Taiwan) can be taken by force – just taken by force – is just not appropriate. It will dislocate the entire region and be another action similar to what happened in Ukraine. And so, it’s a burden that is even stronger,” the President said during his news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

It was a line that many…