总统乔·拜登将在6月作为总统进行他的第一次海外旅行,前往联合王国和比利时白宫周五宣布,将参加七国集团和北约峰会。
此行还将突显拜登政府和特朗普政府之间外交政策的转变,后者高度强调“美国优先”的方针。
白宫新闻秘书珍·普萨基(Jen Psaki)在宣布此次访问的声明中说:“这次访问将突出他对恢复我们的联盟、振兴跨大西洋关系以及与我们的盟友和多边伙伴密切合作以应对全球挑战和更好地确保美国利益的承诺。”
普萨基说,拜登将出席6月11日至13日在英国康沃尔举行的第47届七国集团峰会,他将“努力推进美国在公共卫生、经济复苏和气候变化方面的关键政策优先事项,并展示主要民主国家之间的团结和共同价值观”。
帕萨基还指出,拜登将与包括英国首相鲍里斯·约翰逊在内的其他七国集团领导人举行双边会议,这是他此行的一部分。
拜登随后将出席6月14日在比利时布鲁塞尔举行的北约峰会。
“北约领导人将讨论如何使北约适应未来的威胁,并确保有效的责任分担。总统还将与北约其他领导人举行双边会议。
这一宣布是在拜登与世界领导人就气候变化举行虚拟峰会之际做出的。
在2020年竞选期间,拜登承诺,他的总统任期的一部分将是重新参与全球舞台,承诺重新加入美国在特朗普执政期间退出的协议,包括《巴黎气候协议》和世界卫生组织。
拜登选择的前两次国外访问目的地——旨在巩固长期联盟的欧洲多边峰会——与特朗普对这种传统外交活动的厌恶形成鲜明对比。
他的出席将完全背离特朗普在此类集会上的做法,特朗普经常通过公开向盟友提出要求、威胁将美国撤出北约以及甚至提前离开来破坏这些集会。
尽管特朗普很少拘泥于剧本,但拜登迄今为止显示了他对传统的、有分寸的外交政策制定过程的信心和坚持。
总统出国旅行通常在就职后的头几个月内进行,但由于新冠肺炎大流行和为遏制病毒传播而实施的旅行限制,总统出国旅行后来被拜登接管。
目前,英国被疾病控制和预防中心列为“四级”国家,建议美国人应该避免去英国旅行。
当被问及美国人是否能指望总统在旅行前取消旅行限制时,普萨基说她不能做出任何预测。
“这是基于健康和建议——健康和——我们的健康和医疗团队的建议和建议。在这方面,我没有什么可以预测的,”普萨基在周五的新闻发布会上说。
Biden to make first overseas trip to UK, Belgium in June
PresidentJoe Bidenwill make his first overseas trip as president in June, traveling to theUnited KingdomandBelgiumto participate in the G-7 and NATO summits, the White House announced Friday.
The trip will also highlight the shift in foreign policy between the Biden administration and the Trump administration, which placed a high emphasis on an "America First" approach.
"This trip will highlight his commitment to restoring our alliances, revitalizing the Transatlantic relationship, and working in close cooperation with our allies and multilateral partners to address global challenges and better secure America’s interests," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement announcing the travel.
Biden will attend the 47th G-7 Summit in Cornwall, U.K., taking place June 11-13, where he will "work to advance key U.S. policy priorities on public health, economic recovery, and climate change, and demonstrate solidarity and shared values among major democracies," Psaki said.
Psaki also noted Biden will hold bilateral meetings with other G-7 leaders, including U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson as part of the trip, Psaki added.
Biden will then attend the NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium on June 14.
"NATO leaders will discuss how to orient the Alliance to future threats and ensure effective burden sharing. The President will also hold bilateral meetings with fellow NATO leaders," Psaki said.
The announcement came as Biden was holding a virtual summit with world leaders on climate change.
During the 2020 campaign, Biden pledged part of his presidency would be to re-engaging on the global stage, pledging to rejoin agreements the U.S. withdrew from under Trump, including the Paris Agreement on climate and the World Health Organization.
Biden's choice of destinations for his first two foreign stops -- multilateral summits in Europe aimed at shoring up longstanding alliances -- stands in sharp contrast with Trump's aversion to such traditional, diplomatic events.
His presence will be a complete departure from Trump's approach to such gatherings, which he often aimed to disrupt by publicly making demands of allies, threatening to withdraw the U.S. from NATO and once even leaving early.
While Trump rarely stuck to the script, Biden has so far displayed his faith in and adherence to the traditional, measured foreign policy-making process.
Presidential travel abroad often comes within the first few months in office, but comes later under Biden due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and travel restrictions in place to curb spread of the virus.
Currently, the United Kingdom is listed as a "Level Four" country by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, advising that Americans should avoid all travel to the United Kingdom.
When asked if Americans can expect the president to lift the travel restrictions ahead of his trip, Psaki said she couldn’t make any predictions.
"That is based on the health and recommendations -- the health and -- the advice and and recommendations of our health and medical team. And I don’t have anything to predict on the front," Psaki said at her Friday press briefing.