Washington: The recent steps taken by the President of United State of America by reshuffling the cabinet has fueled concerns. He has appointed a hawkish John Bolton as National Security Adviser (NSA), a step he has taken after recently appointing a former CIA chief as the new secretary of state.
Trump, hurriedly, decided to sack Gen. HR McMaster from post in NSA, and replaced him with John Bolton. The former US envoy to the United Nations is slated to assume assigned office on April 9. This step is just days after the President replaced Rex Tillerson with Mike Pompeo as the new Secretary of State.
The double sacking within few days has sent shockwaves for many concerned people. But the question arises about the meaning of such replacements for countries like China, India and Pakistan which comes under the front for US-Asia Policy. Experts comment that with the uncertainty looming around for the Asian countries, one thing seems to be very clear, that the US-Asia Policy will have to face more hurdles in the coming months.
Experts are of the view that the recent decisions by US President Trump are in fact the realization of his administration’s National Security Strategy, with these two denoting the faces of policy. The immediate effect of this change can be seen in the very near future in the administration’s approach towards North Korea. Along with that experts also expect the duo to be hard-lined and outspoken on a range of issues, with a strong approach, including for China, where they are considered to be harboring Trump’s idea clones and are critical in approach.
In the approaching days, the United States Foreign policy for China is less likely to take a turn in the administration’s current approach, as much as it is to cement it with the Bolton-Pompeo elevation.
“Both men have expressed hawkish views on China, entirely in line with the administration’s push for a more confrontational military posture and aggressive economic tariffs,” explains Lindsey Ford, a former senior adviser to the Department of Defense on Asian security affairs under President Obama.
Lindsey further warns, “Pompeo will have to find a way to balance his hawkish tendencies with the need to reassure anxious Asian partners that the United States doesn’t intend to burn the entire house down with a devastating trade war.”
With John Bolton as NSA chief, experts do view the White House trying to lean on China to be able to pressurize Pakistanis to crack down harder on terrorism. It may not be a new idea, but it’s something that Bolton has already pushed for ever since Trump announced his new South Asia strategy in late August 2017.
Experts cast doubts on whether China may have interest in doing Washington’s bidding and pressing Islamabad to go after groups that, at the end of the day, are not the biggest concerns for China.
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