Quick takes on Biden policies

Here are some stories that focus on some significant issues the Biden-Harris Administration is dealing with.

Providing better access to COVID vaccine for poorer countries: Michael Safi, Covid vaccines: what is patent waiving and will it solve the global shortage? Guardian 05/06/2021; Sam Fraser, Biden takes a vital step on vaccine patents — but more action is needed Responsible Statecraft 05/05/2021.

That's good news as far as it goes. Notably, the EU was caught flat-footed by Biden's announcement. But the EU is not nearly as far along with the domestic vaccinations as the US is at the moment: Ashley Furlong, US shift on vaccines embarrasses Europe before India summit Politico EU 05/06/2021:

The U.S. decision to drop its objections was received as a seismic shift in Europe, with EU and U.K. officials scrambling Thursday morning to react and articulate whether they, too, would shift their position. And within the EU, cracks in the bloc's solidarity against the proposal started to form, with Italian officials expressing support for the patent waiver. [my emphasis]

Iran nuclear deal: Thomas Countryman, Biden is getting closer to a deal with Iran, and Democrats in Congress need to get with the program Business Insider 05/04/2021

Withdrawal of combat troops from Afghanistan: Stephen Walt, What Comes After the Forever Wars Foreign Policy 04/28/2021

Other signs of restraint in the Greater Middle East: Fred Kaplan, Saudi Arabia and Iran Are Starting to Solve Their Differences Without America Slate 05/05/2021

Interesting moment of pragmatism over NordStream 2: Marina Adami, Blinken: US ‘will respond’ if Russia ‘acts recklessly’ Politico EU 05/06/2021

The diplomat also reiterated U.S. President Joe Biden’s personal opposition to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project linking Russia and Germany. Despite the U.S. Justice Department initially deciding to allow sanctions against the company building the gas pipeline as part of new penalties against Russia, the approval was reversed in April. However, the U.S. president still believes Nord Stream 2 is “a bad idea,” Blinken said. [my emphasis]

I could really do without all the "new Cold War" talk, although that talk is more centered on China than Russia. But the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is a big negotiating point, which could turn out to be constructive or seriously problematic, depending on how it is actually fitted into the larger picture of US-Russia-China relations. It increases European dependence on Russian gas. But Russia is a petrostate, so it also makes Russia more dependent on Europe.

So it's a relief to see this bit of pragmatism in US foreign policy. It makes total sense to keep Nord Stream 2 as a negotiating point in a larger set of relationships. Which I'm pretty sure is not exactly how it was being approached by the US the last couple of years.