US: Democratic-controlled House of Representatives could change foreign policy
(Baonghean.vn) - Democrats will use their new majority in the US House of Representatives to reverse what they see as Republicans' hands-off approach to President Donald Trump's foreign policy, and will push for a tougher response to Russia, Saudi Arabia and North Korea.
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| A Democratic-controlled House of Representatives could change foreign policy. Photo: Getty |
Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel, who is likely to become head of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Democrats could also speed up congressional approval of the use of force in places like Iraq and Syria.
But in some hot spots like China and Iran, President Trump’s foreign policy is unlikely to be reversed. With a majority in the House, Democrats will have a greater role in setting spending policy and rewriting legislation. “I think we have an obligation to review policies and provide oversight,” Rep. Engel said.
Specifically, for Russia, from a political perspective, a Democratic-controlled House of Representatives will push to sanction Russia for interfering in US elections and Moscow's aggressive activities in Ukraine, or military intervention in the Syrian war.
The House will push for additional sanctions targeting Russian government debt. It will also try to pressure President Trump to implement the full sanctions package of a bill he reluctantly signed into law last August.
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| US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Photo: AP |
In a sign of the ongoing tensions with Saudi Arabia following the Khashoggi killing, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives will vote on legislation to block arms sales to Riyadh, a move that would make it harder to pass a nuclear energy deal that would end US aircraft refueling and other support operations in the Yemen campaign.
Although Mr. Engel sees Saudi Arabia as a counterweight to Iran's influence in the Middle East, he said Washington needs to demand more from Riyadh.
On the North Korea issue, Democrats said they were determined to gather more information about President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, expressing concern that Trump was so eager to reach a "great deal" that he made too many concessions to Pyongyang.
On the Iran nuclear deal, there is little chance that Democrats will change their policy toward Iran as long as Republicans are in the White House. Although Mr. Engel is among the Democrats who oppose the nuclear deal, he believes that President Trump should cooperate more closely with important allies, such as European Union (EU) member states, on this issue and many others./.