Alignment of U.S. and Indian interests ‘makes a great difference’, says Biden’s envoy nominee to Beijing

U.S. President Joe Biden’s nominee for the post of Ambassador to Beijing, Nicholas Burns, said the alignment of U.S. and Indian interests in the Indo-Pacific “makes a great difference” in terms of the

U.S. President Joe Biden’s nominee for the post of Ambassador to Beijing, Nicholas Burns, said the alignment of U.S. and Indian interests in the Indo-Pacific “makes a great difference” in terms of the challenges posed by China.

Mr. Burns was answering a question on the U.S.’s opportunities and constraints in collaborating with different countries while dealing with Beijing.

“The comparative advantage that we have versus China is that we have treaty allies. We have partners who deeply believe in us and the Chinese really do not,” Mr. Burns said, highlighting U.S. President Joe Biden’s emphasis on treaty partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, such as with Japan, Australia, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia. He also mentioned India, which is not a treaty partner with the U.S., but a ‘Major Defence Partner’ and a country that regularly holds bilateral and multilateral security exercises with the U.S.