Even Biden caught off guard by his administration’s foreign policy

On Sep 25, 2021

After days of angry phone calls and public statements from the French, Macron took the extraordinary step of recalling the French ambassador to the US for the first time in modern history. Biden was receiving regular briefings on the fallout by national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and by Sunday the President told his advisers he wanted to speak with Macron, believing a direct conversation could help smooth things over.

The debacle is the latest in a series of foreign policy crises that have erupted over the past several weeks for Biden, ones that both foreign diplomats and US officials have said were completely avoidable. The gaffes have left sources inside and outside the administration frustrated and perplexed, with some even comparing the lapses to what they’d expect from former President Trump.

US and foreign officials say they have been bewildered and appalled by the Biden administration’s two recent, major diplomatic failures — first in the execution of its withdrawal from Afghanistan and then by enraging its oldest ally, France, by keeping the country in the dark about the submarine deal, known as AUKUS.

Some administration officials have countered that the French would have been angry regardless of when and how the US notified them of the deal, with one going so far as to describe the French reaction as a “temper tantrum.”

But many acknowledge that it could have been handled better.

“This brutal, unilateral and unpredictable decision reminds me a lot of what Mr Trump used to do,” Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told franceinfo radio. “I am angry and bitter. This isn’t done between allies.”

President Joe Biden, President of France, Emmanuel Macron and European Commission Ursula von der Leyen speak during the G7 Summit on June 11, 2021.

These diplomats say there is intense interest in their capitals as to why this is happening, given the fact that Biden and many of his senior officials served in the Obama administration, an experience that should have left them seasoned enough to communicate more clearly, plan more carefully and execute more effectively. But recently, there have been too many surprises, the biggest being the rapid fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban. The chaotic and deadly withdrawal was also capped by a major tragedy when a US drone strike mistakenly targeted an Afghan NGO worker and killed 10 civilians.

Addressing the nation last month, Biden said his administration had not expected Kabul to fall so quickly. “We were clear-eyed about the risks. We planned for every contingency. But I always promised the American people I would be straight with you. The truth is, this did unfold more quickly than we had anticipated.”

One administration official said that despite the criticism around the Afghanistan withdrawal, the administration kept NATO allies abreast of its plans for the withdrawal.

“Not enough people in their chairs”

Some sources pointed to failures in coordination and communication between the National Security Council and the State Department, which is usually the main point of contact for foreign partners. But…