US 'more aligned’ with allies on China and Russia's aggression towards Ukraine: Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday iterated that the United States is more aligned with its regional allies and partners than it was over a year ago “on nearly every issue,” as he noted that coordination with other countries “is now more important than ever.” At a State Department briefing, the US Secretary insisted that America’s ties with its key allies and partners “were badly strained” but the Biden administration has stepped up engagement to advance its mutual interests and values and tackle ‘big challenges’ and  rebuilding foundations of American foreign policy.

“Since January 20th, we’ve reinvigorated our engagement with key allies— NATO, the European Union, the United Nations, the OECD, the G7, the G20, ASEAN.  We created AUKUS; we elevated the QUAD with two leader-level summits; we launched the Build Back Better World global infrastructure initiative,” Blinken emphasised in his speech earlier on Tuesday. 

US has boosted cooperation with the allies on key issues such as the Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine and its neighbors, Iran’s nuclear program, and China’s efforts to challenge the rules-based international order, said US Secreatry of State, Blinken. “I attest from my dozens of face-to-face meetings with counterparts in every region of the world that they’re glad – frankly, relieved – that the United States is once again engaged and once again leading,” he went on to add.

US-China-Russia tensions soar over military assertiveness, human rights breach 

Blinken’s remarks came as tensions soared with the People’s of China over the recent boycott of the Beijing Olympics 2022 due to alleged human rights abuses against the ethnic minority Uyghurs in the far-west Xinjiang region. The US had also openly condemned Beijing’s crackdown on the pro-democracy protesters in the autonomous city of Hong Kong, as well as had a fallout about the theories and research related to the coronavirus pandemic origin.

The US also recently pledged support for Lithuania in the Baltic nation’s ongoing row with Beijing over the establishment of the de facto embassy for Taiwan. Blinken threatened severe consequences for Russia if Putin attempted to launch a military offensive as tensions mounted on the frontier with Ukraine over the massive troop build up. 

Speaking about US’ vaccine solidarity, Blinken stressed that more than 330 million vaccine doses have been delivered to at least 110 countries, and over 1.2 billion vaccines will be donated to the partner nations next year. He highlighted the Biden administration’s re-participation with the global health agency WHO, saying that it has been a leading country in funding COVAX, the global partnership that distributes safe vaccines equitably, globally.