US President Joe Biden will announce on Thursday the end of US support for the war in Yemen and the freezing of the withdrawal of American troops in Germany, thus marking a double strategic turning point against Donald Trump.
This was advanced by White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan shortly before Biden’s first foreign policy speech since arriving at the White House this afternoon at the State Department.
“Today [Biden] will announce the end of US support for offensive operations in Yemen “, which “Perpetuate the civil war” and “caused a humanitarian crisis”, Sullivan told reporters.
End of US support for Saudi-led military coalition fighting Yemeni Houthi rebels reverses Trump’s policy of providing logistical assistance and selling huge quantities of sophisticated weapons.
This promise of the Biden campaign is part of a broader review of US policy in the Middle East.
The plan will also review the inclusion of Houthis in the blacklist of “terrorist organizations” in the United States., another measure taken in extremes by the Trump administration, but criticized on all sides for threatening to deliver aid to Yemen, which, according to the UN, is already the scene of the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today.
Biden “will talk about the fact that the United States plays a more active and engaged role in diplomacy to end the conflict“Sullivan said.
He will also use his speech to appoint an experienced career diplomat, Timothy Lenderking, as envoy to Yemen, a source familiar with the matter told AFP.
“Keep Russia in mind”
In another reversal of his predecessor’s plans, Biden will “freeze” Trump’s plan to reduce the presence of American troops in Germany, a cornerstone of NATO’s security since the beginning of the Cold War.
“He will announce … a review of the global forces situation and, pending this review, will freeze any redeployment of troops in Germany,” Sullivan said.
Trump, who was comfortable with Berlin, said in June that he wanted to greatly reduce the number of military personnel stationed in Germany from about 35,000 to about 25,000.
Later, The Pentagon has specified that the withdrawal will involve approximately 12,000 soldiers, with the repatriation of 6,400 of them to the United States., while the other 5,600 would be repositioned in other NATO countries.
Trump’s decision was linked to his strained relationship with Germany and the European Union on trade issues, but he expressed concern that he was undermining the security of Western countries vis-à-vis returning Russia.
But Sullivan also showed the firmness of the new administration towards Russia.
“Unlike the previous government, we will make decisions to hold Russia accountable for the chain of destabilizing activities it has carried out,” Sullivan said, without providing a timetable or details.
Biden, which accuses the Kremlin of a massive cyber attack and accuses it of meddling in the US presidential election, it quickly strengthened Washington’s position on Moscow.
The United States has also denounced the arrest of Alexei Navalny, one of the few remaining opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Sullivan also said the White House is also assessing “specific sanctions” against entities channeling financial support to the Burmese military following this week’s coup against Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government.
“We are looking at specific sanctions targeting both individuals and military-controlled entities,” he said.