John,

We’re in the thick of President Biden’s first 100 days in office –– and his 40+ executive orders are already changing the American foreign policy playbook around the globe. 

China-US relations have officially entered a new chapter, Myanmar’s military coup has given President BIden his first major foreign policy challenge, and the President’s actions are even shaking up relations with our ally north of the border.

Catch up on everything you missed over the last month, and make sure to share your thoughts using our comment box below. 

[READ] BIDEN SPEAKS WITH XI FOR FIRST TIME SINCE TAKING OFFICE

The bottom line: President Biden spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time Wednesday night since taking office, outlining his administration’s "core concerns" with China’s "practices, aggressive activities and abuses," signaling a "clear and consistent subscription to American values," while discussing areas in which the administration believes it could be in the United States’ national interest to work with Beijing, senior administration officials said.

What should President Biden’s #1 priority be when confronting China over the next four years?

Use the comment box below to share your thoughts. 

[READ] HOW BIG TECH ENABLED THE MILITARY COUP IN MYANMAR

The bottom line: Myanmar’s is a coup for the digital age, where military officials can draw on a new arsenal of tools to control the information landscape. In a country where over 22 million people—or about 40 percent of the population—rely on Facebook alone to communicate with loved ones, access daily news, and mobilize politically, the military’s blocking order amounted to a draconian shutdown to essential communication tools and evinced to a desperate need to control the free flow of information.

[READ] BIDEN ANNOUNCES SANCTIONS AGAINST LEADERS OF MYANMAR COUP

The bottom line: President Biden on Wednesday announced sanctions on the military leaders who directed the coup in Myanmar. 

Earlier this month, the administration labeled the military takeover and detention of Aung San Suu Kyi a coup, triggering a freeze in certain U.S. assistance to the country and a review of some aid programs. Support for health care, civil society groups and other aid that benefit the Burmese people directly will continue. 

"I've approved a new executive order ... enabling us to immediately sanction the military leaders who directed the coup, their business interests, as well as close family members," Mr. Biden said Wednesday. "We will identify a first round of targets this week, and we're also going to impose strong export controls. We're freezing U.S. assets that benefit the Burmese government, while maintaining our support for health care, civil society groups and other areas that benefit the people of Burma directly."

[READ] BIDEN ADMINISTRATION WELCOMING THOUSANDS OF UNDOCUMENTED MIGRANTS INTO U.S.

The bottom line: The Biden administration on Friday announced plans for tens of thousands of asylum-seekers waiting in Mexico for their next immigration court hearings to be allowed into the United States while their cases proceed.

The first of an estimated 25,000 asylum-seekers in Mexico with active cases will be allowed in the United States on February 19, authorities said.

They plan to start slowly with two border crossings each processing up to 300 people a day and a third crossing taking fewer. Administration officials declined to name them out of fear they may encourage a rush of people to those locations.

[READ] CANADIAN PM TRUDEAU ‘DISAPPOINTED’ AFTER BIDEN CANCELS KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE

The bottom line: Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau says he is ‘disappointed’ at Joe Biden’s decision to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline. The president made revoking the permits for the controversial energy project by executive order one of his first action’s in the White House.

Mr Trudeau expressed his frustration with the cancellation of the pipeline, according to a readout of the president’s first call with a foreign leader. The prime minister “raised Canada’s disappointment with the United States’ decision on the Keystone XL pipeline,” the readout stated.

[READ] PRESIDENT BIDEN ISSUES FIRST FOREIGN POLICY ADDRESS

The bottom line: Biden’s speech included a handful of announcements and intentions:

• Raise the U.S. refugee cap from 15,000 under Donald Trump to 125,000 in his first full fiscal year in office.
• A global review of all U.S. forces to assess whether America’s military footprint aligned with its priorities. Biden added that he would stop Trump’s planned troop withdrawals from Germany.
• A summit of the world’s democracies “early in my presidency.”
• End U.S. support for “offensive operations” in Yemen, including by ending “relevant arms sales” to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and pushing for a ceasefire. He added that the U.S. would continue to help Saudi Arabia defend its territory, and also announced career diplomat Timothy Lenderking as the new U.S. envoy for Yemen.
• Issue a presidential memo to government agencies to advance protections for LGBTQI people around the world.

As always, thanks for reading. You’ll be hearing from us soon. 

-Gallagher Foreign Policy HQ