This @axios piece has been making the rounds.

If "allies matter" becomes the foundation of a (possible) Biden Administration& #39;s foreign policy, then a important question needs to be asked:

What is meant by "allies"?

Time to be persnickety.

[THREAD] https://www.axios.com/joe-biden-doctrine-allies-matter-foreign-policy-d0d37753-6701-415b-bb69-ab60d0354662.html">https://www.axios.com/joe-biden...
"Ally" is a word that is thrown around a lot by policy makers, the media, and even scholars.

What& #39;s clear from the piece is that the phrase "allies" or "alliances" is not being limited to "military defense pact joint signatory" (e.g. @NATO).
It& #39;s also clear that the piece isn& #39;t even limited to "US military relationships" more broadly. Those fall into a host of different categories https://twitter.com/ProfPaulPoast/status/1197224542114058240">https://twitter.com/ProfPaulP...
Instead, the @axios piece discusses the "America First era of withdrawal from global alliances" that has marked the Trump administration.
But the US is not technically part of a "global alliance" (unless you count a "collective security" organization like the UN). https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🤔" title="Denkendes Gesicht" aria-label="Emoji: Denkendes Gesicht">
But the US is/was party to a host of multilateral treaties and agreements on a variety of issues.

And here is where we get to the crux of the claim in the piece.
The Trump administration has withdrawn from a lot of these treaties and agreements: Paris Accord, Iran Deal, WHO, INF, UNESCO, etc. https://twitter.com/dhnexon/status/1266714465178914816">https://twitter.com/dhnexon/s...
So substitute "allies" for "treaties and agreements".

The (prospective) Biden Doctrine is "treaties and agreements matter".
Do treaties and agreements matter? That& #39;s a question to address at another time.

But for now, I just want to make sure our terminology is clear.

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