2020 US Presidential Candidates on the Indo-Pacific

The 2020 Presidential Candidates on the Indo-Pacific resource highlighted mentions of Indo-Pacific issues by US presidential candidates and nominees in speeches, campaign documents, and debates.

To view statements by President Trump prior to his June 18, 2019 declaration to seek a second term, as well as members of his Cabinet, visit The Trump Administration & US - Indo-Pacific Relations.

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2020 Democratic Party Platform - Indo-Pacific

"Democrats will take aggressive action against China or any other country that tries to undercut American manufacturing by manipulating their currencies and maintaining a misaligned exchange rate with the dollar, dumping products like steel and aluminum in our markets, or providing unfair subsidies. Unlike President Trump, we will stand up to efforts from China and other state actors to steal America’s intellectual property and will demand China and other countries cease and desist from conducting cyber espionage against our companies. And we will take immediate…

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Remarks by President Trump at the Coronavirus Task Force in Press Briefing - South Korea

"Q Yes. Another — a different question about South Korea. There are reports that you are personally negotiating with President Moon the terms of reduction of U.S. forces on the Korean Peninsula, and that there are four scenarios involved. Can you confirm that? And, if so, what is your desired outcome?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think that South Korea — I had a great talk with President Moon. He’s a friend of mine. I congratulated — he had a wonderful election victory. I was very…

William Weld's Interview with Keene SentinelSource - Indo-Pacific Issues

Remarks by President Trump in a Cabinet Meeting - China and South Korea

"And they announced another number this morning. That was a number that was very warm to my heart. Since the election, we’ve created $11 trillion in worth. Now, China has gone down by double that number, and we’ve gone up by $11 trillion. So when — whoever it was that was going to be President, they said, “Within two years, China would overtake the United States as the world’s largest economy.” We’re so far ahead of them right now, it’s not even close. And if…

Joe Biden's Remarks During a Town Hall in Elko, Nevada - China and the Koreas

Remarks by President Trump at the Economic Club of New York - China, Japan, and South Korea

"And I will tell you, when I signed — that was another one — Clean Waters of the United States — well, the Paris Accord, too — and I said, “This is going to take guts.” I just closed my eyes and I signed it. (Laughter.) I got one day of a big hit from some of the radical-left newspapers. And then after that, everybody thanks me. They thank me so profusely. You’re talking about trillions and trillions of dollars of destruction would have been…

Remarks by President Trump in Cabinet Meeting - South Korea and China

"So the economy is doing fantastically well. We want to vote on USMCA. We have other trade deals that we’ve done. We’ve done South Korea, which is a fantastic deal for us; it turned out even better than we thought. South Korea was a terrible deal. [...]China is doing very poorly — worst year they’ve had in 57 years. I wonder why. I wonder why. I’m sure you can’t figure it out.

And we’re doing great. We’re taking in billions and billions of dollars in…

William Weld's Op-Ed in Foreign Affairs - North Korea, Indo-Pacific Alliances, and China

"The nearest-term existential threat we face today involves nuclear weapons, whether in the hands of a state or a non-state actor. Every U.S. administration since the Cold War has been determined to prevent North Korea and Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. As president, I would be no less determined. If North Korea and Iran obtain or build nuclear weapons, then it will be the fault of the United States and its partners. But we cannot wish the problem away by bullying or bluster—Trump’s modus operandi…

Remarks by President Trump and President Moon of the Republic of Korea Before Bilateral Meeting - North Korea

"PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, thank you very much. We’re pleased to be with President Moon of South Korea. We have a long-term friendship, and we are making a lot of progress. We are working on tremendous trade deals. We — as you know, we’ve completed a trade deal, and that’s working out very well for both countries. That deal is completed now, and it’s been in existence for — solidly in existence for six months. And it’s been very good.

And we intend to do some…

Vice President Pence's Remarks at the Heritage Foundation - Trade with the Indo-Pacific

Remarks by Vice President Pence at the Lord Mayor’s International Trade Dinner - South Korea, Japan, and China

"And since we took office, the President has pursued an ambitious trade agenda built on the principles of free and fair and reciprocal trade. We made a new trade deal with South Korea. We reached an agreement in principle with Japan for a free trade agreement. We’ve put China on notice. We ended the era of economic surrender by using the power of the United States economy. And this morning, we announced that negotiations on a new trade deal with China will resume in October."

Remarks by President Trump Before Marine One Departure - China and North Korea

"THE PRESIDENT: We’re going to France. We’re going to have a good few days. I think it will be very productive seeing a lot of the leaders, who are friends of mine, for the most part. I wouldn’t say in a hundred percent of the cases, but for the most part.

And I think we’re doing very well. Our economy is doing great.

We’re having a little spat with China, and we’ll win it. We put a lot of tariffs on China today, as you…

Remarks by President Trump Before Marine One Departure - China, Japan , South Korea, and North Korea

"THE PRESIDENT: So, we’re doing very well with China. We’re talking to China. We’re not ready to make a deal, but we’ll see what happens. But, you know, we’ve been hurt by China for 25, 30 years. Nobody has done anything about it. And we have no choice but to do what we’re doing.

It’s working out very well, as you know. We called them on manipulation and they brought their numbers back, and they brought them back rapidly. And they were able to do…