Candidate Joe Biden

Joe Biden is a former U.S. vice president in the Barack Obama administration, from 2008 to 2017. Elected to the U.S. Senate from Delaware, he served from 1973 to 2009 and chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee several times between 2001 and 2009. 

Campaign Website: https://joebiden.com/

WHERE DOES HE STAND ON KEY FOREIGN POLICY ISSUES?

[Last Updated: 10/1/20]

Positions RegardingActions & Statements with Sources
U.S. PowersIn a February 2020 response to a questionnaire, Biden replied, “I would do whatever necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, taking no option off the table. I would also be prepared to use force in the event of an imminent long-range missile attack by either Iran or North Korea.” 
“We do have a moral duty, as well as a security interest, to respond to genocide or chemical weapons use.” 

Biden added, “I would consider the use of the military, in partnership with allies, to defend shipping lanes or important assets if the disruption to oil supplies posed a threat to the global economy.”
“The United States should not impose regime change on other countries. But it is appropriate for us to provide nonmilitary support for opposition movements seeking universal human rights and more representative and accountable governance.”

During the February 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “The only way not to become the policeman of the world is to have allies who will join us in dealing with failed States and terrorism.


In 2002 Biden voted to authorize military force in Iraq. . . When President Bush pushed for war, Biden co-sponsored a bill that permitted the use of force only if the UN Security Council passed a resolution attesting that it was necessary to remove weapons of mass destruction (which did not exist). 

Following the terrorist attacks of September 2001, Biden strongly supported President George W. Bush’s invasion of Afghanistan.
Nuclear WeaponsIn a July 2020 speech, Biden said, “All pieces of the nuclear triad need to be modernized and overhauled. They’re reaching the end of their service life. One thing that is really critical to the US is a reliable, safer nuclear strategic response option. I think the ground-based strategic missiles are critical to that. And we need to [modernize weapons] in the time frame the Air Force has recommended.

In a July 2020 speech, Biden said, I believe the sole purpose of the U.S. nuclear arsenal should be to deter and if necessary, retaliate against a nuclear attack. As president, I’ll work to put that belief into practice after consultation with our allies and our military.”
Military BudgetIn November 2019, Biden stated, “We can maintain a strong defense and protect our safety and security for less. The real question is not how much we invest — it’s how we invest . . ..We have to make smart investments in technologies and innovations — including in cyber, space, unmanned systems, and artificial intelligence — that will be necessary to meet the threats of the future.”
Immigration In the July 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “In fact, when people cross the border illegally, it is illegal to do it unless they’re seeking asylum. People should have to get in line. That’s the problem.” 
Russia
In a July 2020 speech, Biden said, “In Helsinki, Trump repeatedly deferred to Vladimir Putin over American interest, the American intelligence community, and—I would argue—over the American people’s interest. I think it was one of the most shameful performances by a U.S. president in modern history.”

In June 2020, responding to reports that Russia had paid bounties to Afghans to kill U.S. soldiers, Biden said, “[Trump’s] entire presidency has been a gift to Putin, but this is beyond the pale. It’s betrayal of the most sacred duty we bear as a nation to protect and equip our troops when we send them into harm’s way. It’s a betrayal of every single American family with a loved one serving in Afghanistan or anywhere overseas.”  

During the October 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “The fact of the matter is, you have Russia influencing and trying to break up NATO. What does the president do? Trump says, ‘I believe Vladimir Putin. I don’t believe our intelligence community.’ “

In response to a question during the October 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “Look, my son [Hunter Biden] did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong. I carried out the policy of the United States government in rooting out corruption in Ukraine. And that’s what we should be focusing on . . . I never discussed a single thing with my son about anything having to do with Ukraine. No one has indicated I have. We’ve always kept everything separate.”

In August 2019, Biden stated, “I would make Ukraine a U.S. foreign policy priority. On the military side, I would provide more U.S. security assistance — including weapons — to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to defend itself. I would also expand the successful training mission for the Ukrainian Armed Forces that was initiated by the Obama-Biden administration.”

In a July 2019 speech, Biden pointed to his role as a founding member of the Transatlantic Commission on Election Integrity to fight back against Russia’s alleged attacks on Western democracies, which included a pledge committing to transparency in campaign finance and to reject the use of fabricated or hacked material. 

In a February 2020 response to a questionnaire, Biden replied that Russia should be required to return Crimea to Ukraine before Russia is allowed back into the G-7.

During the February 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “NATO is in real trouble. We need NATO for more reasons than just physical security. We need NATO to make sure that we do not allow Russia to continue to have its influence in Eastern Europe in ways that it had before. It wasn’t just to stop the Soviet Union from coming into the United States, coming into Europe. It was to make sure that we did not have a kleptocracy taking over that part of the world.”

In January 2018, Biden said at the Council on Foreign Relations, “I remember going over [to Ukraine in March 2016], convincing our team … that we should be providing for loan guarantees. … And I was supposed to announce that there was another billion-dollar loan guarantee. And I had gotten a commitment from [then Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko] and from [then-Prime Minister Arseniy] Yatsenyuk that they would take action against the state prosecutor [Shokin]. And they didn’t…They were walking out to a press conference. I said, ‘Nah, … We’re not going to give you the billion dollars.’ They said, ‘You have no authority. You’re not the president.’ … I said, ‘Call him.’ I said, ‘I’m telling you, you’re not getting the billion dollars.’ … I looked at them and said, ‘I’m leaving in six hours. If the prosecutor is not fired, you’re not getting the money.’ Well, son of a bitch. He got fired. And they put in place someone who was solid at the time.”

Speaking in Ukraine in April 2014, Vice President Biden said, “An American team is currently in the region working with Ukraine and its neighbors to increase Ukraine’s short-term energy supply.  And I’ve been on the telephone with many of your neighbors, as you know, talking about the way to increase that supply.  And more teams are coming to support long-term improvements so that no nation — let me be precise, so that Russia can no longer use energy as a political weapon against Ukraine and Europe.
With the right investments and the right choices, Ukraine can reduce its energy dependence and increase its energy security.  We will stand with you to help in every way we can for you to accomplish that goal.”

Following the overthrow of the Ukrainian government in 2014, warfare in eastern Ukraine, and the Russian annexation of Crimea, Biden supported shipping to the new government anti-tank missiles and other “lethal defensive weapons.” 
ChinaDuring the September 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “[Trump] He talks about these great trade deals. He talks about the art of the deal. China’s perfected the art of the steel. We have a higher deficit with China now than we did before.”


In a July 2020 speech, Biden said, “We need to get tough with China. If China has its way, it’s going to keep moving and robbing U.S. firms of our technology, intellectual properties and forcing companies to give it away to do business in China. We need to build a united front of friends and partners to challenge China’s abusive behavior, even as we seek to deepen cooperation on issues where our interests converge, like climate change and preventing a nuclear proliferation.” 


During the December 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “The U.S. is on a collision course with China but not for war. What we have to make clear is that we are not going to abide by what they’ve done. 1 million Uyghurs, Muslims, are in concentration camps. That’s where they are right now. They’re being abused. And what we started in our administration that Trump stopped, we should be moving 60% of our sea power to that area of the world. To let the Chinese understand that they’re not going to go any further.”“In terms of their military buildup, it’s real but it would take them about 17 years to build up to where we are. We’re not looking for a war but we’ve got to make clear we are Pacific power and we are not going to back away.”


During the November 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “We should be going to the United Nations seeking condemnation of China, what they’re doing with the million Uighurs that are there, essentially in concentration camps in the west. We should be speaking out about the violation of the commitment they made to Hong Kong. We have to speak out and speak loudly about violations of human rights.”

In a July 2019 speech, Biden reaffirmed the threat from China, but criticized the tariff wars as doing nothing but hurting farmers. It wouldn’t be “back to normal” on trade, he vowed. That requires bringing all democracies into negotiations with China and pursue our own interest and values.

In the July 2019 televised debates, Biden said, 
“I’d renegotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership. We make up 25 percent of the world’s economy. Either China is going to write the rules of the road for the 21st century on trade or we are. We have to join with the 40 percent of the world that we had with us, and this time make sure that there’s no one sitting at that table doing the deal unless environmentalists are there and labor is there.”


In a 2019 interview, Biden stated, “China is going to eat our lunch? Come on, man! The fact that they have this great division between the China Sea and the mountains in the East—I mean in the West. They can’t figure out how they’re going to deal with the corruption that exists within the system. They’re not bad folks. But guess what, they’re not competition for us.”
KoreaDuring the January 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “I would not meet with Kim Jong-un without any preconditions. Look, we gave him everything he’s looking for. Legitimacy, the President showed up, met with him, gave him legitimacy, weakened the sanctions we have against them. I would be putting what I did as Vice President. I’ve met with Xi Jin-ping more than anyone else. I would be putting pressure on China to put pressure on Korea, to cease and desist from their nuclear power.”

In a February 2020 response to a questionnaire, Biden replied that he would tighten sanctions until North Korea has given up all of its nuclear and missile programs, and that he would not agree to begin withdrawing American troops from the Korean peninsula.


During the November 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “I’d go back in making sure we had the alliances we had before since he became president. He has absolutely ostracized us from South Korea. He has given North Korea everything they wanted, creating the legitimacy by having a meeting with Kim Jong-un, who’s a thug — although he points out that I’m a rabid dog who needs to be beaten with a stick, very recently was his comment.”

In August 2019, Biden stated, “After three made-for-TV summits, we still don’t have a single concrete commitment from North Korea. Not one missile or nuclear weapon has been destroyed, not one inspector is on the ground. If anything, the situation has gotten worse. North Korea has more capability today than when Trump began his “love affair” with Kim Jong-un, a murderous tyrant who, thanks to Trump, is no longer an isolated pariah on the world stage.”
Israel / PalestineIn a February 2020 response to a questionnaire, Biden replied, “As president, I would oppose [the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement] efforts in Congress. We should be mindful, however, that steps to sanction supporters of B.D.S. may be inconsistent with First Amendment protections of free speech.” 

During the December 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “Bibi Netanyahu and I know one another well. He knows that I think what he’s doing is outrageous. What we do is we have to put pressure constantly on the Israelis to move to a two state solution, not withdraw a physical aid from them in terms of their security.” 

In August 2019, Biden stated, “America must sustain its ironclad commitment to Israel’s security – including the unprecedented support provided by the Obama-Biden administration. It is also essential to resume assistance to the Palestinian Authority that supports Israeli-Palestinian security cooperation, people-to-people programs, economic development, and humanitarian aid and health care for the Palestinian people.

In a 2016 speech to J Street, Biden said Israeli actions in promoting and expanding settlements, legalization of outposts, and land seizures are moving Israel toward a “one-state reality” and that reality is dangerous. He also said he had opposed Israeli settlements for more than three decades and believed that they are counterproductive to Israel’s security.

During an interview on U.S. cable network Shalom TV, Biden said, “I am a Zionist. You don’t have to be a Jew to be a Zionist.” 

Biden has said that Democratic Party support for Israel “comes from our gut, moves through our heart, and ends up in our head. It’s almost genetic.”
SyriaIn a November 2019 Wall Street Journal interview, Biden said, “Leaving troops behind in Syria—Trump says we’re going to occupy the oil fields, and we took them—is like a giant recruiting poster for ISIS. . . . The whole thing has been turned upside down, and we’re in there alone, basically.”

During the October 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “I would not have withdrawn the troops and I would not have withdrawn the additional thousand troops who are in Iraq, which are in retreat now, being fired on by Assad’s people . . . And with regard to regime change in Syria, that has not been the policy we change the regime. It has been to make sure that the regime did not wipe out hundreds of thousands of innocent people between there and the Iraqi border.”


In a 2018 conversation for Foreign Affairs, Biden described Syria as “a classic example of the biggest conundrum that we have to deal with.” He said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will also need to be removed from power, otherwise Syria will never have peace or security.

In 2013, Biden supported U.S. bombing of Syria following President Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons in the civil war. 
Saudi ArabiaDuring the November 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “Khashoggi was, in fact, murdered and dismembered, and I believe on the order of the crown prince. I would make it very clear we were not going to sell more weapons to them; we were going to make them pay the price and make them the pariah that they are. There’s very little social redeeming value in the present government in Saudi Arabia.”


In August 2019, Biden stated, “I would end U.S. support for the disastrous Saudi-led war in Yemen and order a reassessment of our relationship with Saudi Arabia. It is past time to restore a sense of balance, perspective, and fidelity to our values in our relationships in the Middle East.” 
IranDuring the January 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “I would leave troops in the Middle East in terms of patrolling the [Persian] Gulf. I think it’s a mistake to pull out the small number of troops that are there now to deal with ISIS.”
“There’s a difference between combat troops and leaving Special Forces in position. That’s how we were able to defeat and end the caliphate for ISIS. They’ll come back if we do not deal with them.”

During the February 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “I wouldn’t have ordered the [drone] strike [that killed General Soleimani]; there is no evidence yet of imminent threat that was going to come from him.” 


In January 2020, Biden tweeted, “No American will mourn Qassem Soleimani’s passing. He deserved to be brought to justice for his crimes against American troops and thousands of innocents throughout the region. He supported terror and sowed chaos. None of that negates the fact that this is a hugely escalatory move in an already dangerous region. The administration’s statement says that its goal is to deter future attacks by Iran, but this action almost certainly will have the opposite effect. President Trump just tossed a stick of dynamite into a tinderbox.”

In August 2019, Biden stated, “What Iran is doing is dangerous, but still reversible. If Iran moves back into compliance with its nuclear obligations, I would re-enter the JCPOA as a starting point to work alongside our allies in Europe and other world powers to extend the deal’s nuclear constraints.” 
AfghanistanDuring the February 2020 televised debate, Biden said, “I was totally against the whole notion of nation-building in Afghanistan. The only thing we should be doing is dealing with terrorism in that region.” 


During the December 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “The first thing I would do as president of the United States is to make sure that we brought all combat troops home and into a negotiation with the Taliban. But I would leave behind Special Forces in small numbers to be able to deal with the potential threat unless we got a real good negotiation accomplished to deal with terrorism. That’s been my position from the beginning.” “I’m the guy, from the beginning, who argued that it was a big, big mistake to surge forces to Afghanistan, period. We should not have done it and I argued against it constantly.”


In the September 2019 televised debate, Biden said, “The whole purpose of going to Afghanistan was to not have a counterinsurgency, meaning that we’re going to put that country together. It cannot be put together. Let me say it again. It will not be put together. It’s three different countries. Pakistan owns the three counties — the three provinces in the east. They’re not any part of — the Haqqanis run it.” 
Latin AmericaIn August 2019, Biden stated, “Nicolas Maduro is a tyrant, who has stolen elections, abused his authority, allowed his cronies to enrich themselves, and denied the delivery of food and medicine to the people he claims to lead. I was among the first Democratic foreign policy voices to recognize Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s legitimate leader and to call for Maduro to resign.”

In February 2019, Biden tweeted, “Only a tyrant would prevent the delivery of food and medicine to people he claims to lead. The international community must support Juan Guaido and the National Assembly. It is time for Maduro to step aside and allow a democratic transition. The Venezuelan people deserve better”