A Comparative Analysis of the Biden Administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy vs. the Trump Administration’s

Abstract

In recent years the United States has placed the Indo-Pacific at the centre of its foreign policy and national security strategy. While the Trump administration introduced the United States’ first strategy for the Indo-Pacific, the administration fell short of implementing an effective policy that catered to the regional realities on the ground. The Biden administration has improved upon its predecessor’s shortcomings in the diplomatic domain but has yet to implement a comprehensive economic strategy for the region. This article compares the distinctive diplomatic, economic and security characteristics of the Trump and the Biden administrations’ Indo-Pacific strategies and argues that the latter administration crafted a more effective, albeit incomplete, strategy for advancing US interests.