FPCI Virtual Public Lecture on Key Foreign Policy Issues That Await the Biden Administration with Ambassador Robert Blake
On Friday, 8 January 2021 FPCI held a virtual public lecture on “Key Foreign Policy Issues That Await the Biden Administration” with Ambassador Robert Blake, an American career diplomat with 31 years experience serving in the State Department and Former U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia. H.E. Robert Blake addressed key foreign policy issues that the US will tackle under the Biden presidency, spanning from the U.S.-China relations, the state of play with Iran and the Middle East, the role of Southeast Asia in the geopolitical chessboard, and many more.
The year 2020 marked an all-time low for the so-called leader of the free world. Extenuating domestic situation due to poor management of the pandemic coupled with social unrest has earned America the title of “the sick man of democracies,” so lamented by American professor John Delury.
For the United States, 2021 brings about a set of new hopes, opportunities, and also challenges. The White House will welcome a new administration come January 20th and the world is paying close attention. Indeed, the COVID-19 global pandemic has certainly shifted the dynamics of the world order and global affairs, but the United States under the leadership of President-elect Joe Biden could very well turn the tide against a declining multilateralism and an increasingly protectionist international atmosphere to a whole new direction.
Therefore: will the world see a restoration of U.S. global leadership? Can the world still consider America as a reliable and dependable partner? Which foreign policy issues will the Biden administration prioritize? What does it mean for Southeast Asia and how should the region respond?
