周二，美国总统乔·拜登(Joe Biden)在联合国大会(United Nations General Assembly)上向世界各国领导人发表了告别演说，试图在国际动荡中为自己的外交政策遗产增光添彩。
“这是我第四次非常荣幸地以美国总统的身份在这个大会上发言，”拜登在开始讲话时说。“这将是我最后一次。我已经看到了一个了不起的历史。”
在演讲快结束时，拜登还花了一点时间，沉痛地反思了他结束竞选连任的决定。
拜登说:“我想做的事情太多了。”。“尽管我热爱这份工作，但我更热爱我的国家。在为公众服务了50年后，我决定是时候让新一代领导人带领我的国家前进了。”
“各位领导人，让我们永远不要忘记，有些事情比掌权更重要。这是你的人民，”他说，赢得了掌声。“你的人最重要。永远不要忘记，我们是来为人民服务的，而不是相反。”
尽管拜登带着几十年的外交政策经验入主白宫，但他留下的是一份喜忧参半的记录。
拜登吹捧他的政府重建联盟，称他上任时“决心重建我的国家的联盟和伙伴关系，达到前所未有的水平。”
“我们就是这么做的，”拜登说。
但是在他执政期间开始的两场战争还没有明确的结束迹象。
他的总统任期即将结束，因为乌克兰冲突仍在继续，双方之间有爆发全面战争的风险以色列黎巴嫩也在增加。
奥巴马总统说，在他任期结束之前，首要任务是结束以色列在加沙对哈马斯的战争，但是实现停火的谈判已经停滞。
周二的演讲标志着他最后一次高调召集世界领导人的机会。
“我们将继续支持乌克兰赢得这场战争并维护其自由，还是走开，让侵略重新开始，让一个国家被摧毁?我知道我的答案，”拜登说。“我们不能厌倦。我们不能视而不见，我们不会放松对乌克兰的支持。”
拜登和副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯将于本周晚些时候分别会见乌克兰总统泽伦斯基。哈里斯不会出席联合国大会。
仅在周一，黎巴嫩就有近500人死于以色列的袭击，中东不断升级的紧张局势以及以色列和真主党之间爆发全面战争的威胁，肯定会使联合国的其他议题黯然失色
谈到升级，拜登在讲话中警告说，“全面战争不符合任何人的利益。”
“外交解决仍有可能，”他说。“事实上，让两国的居民安全返回他们在边境上的家园，仍然是实现持久安全的唯一途径。这就是我们不懈努力的目标。”
一位高级政府官员说，这次会议将允许一系列官员在同一个房间里讨论局势。
“这是联合国大会的优势之一。你在这里拥有整个世界。所以，当你有一天的危机，他们会得到解决。这位官员说:“我毫不怀疑，中东局势将是许多会议的一个重要主题，不仅是总统，还有其他美国高级官员，他们将开会讨论危机的各个方面，以及我们可以采取什么措施来稳定局势。”。
“我认为这是一个谈论我们已经取得的成就和我们仍然需要做的事情的机会，考虑到人质没有被送回的令人心碎的局势，加沙的人道主义局势，正如你所知，这是一个如此敏感的问题，以及以色列和黎巴嫩之间目前如此微妙和危险的局势，”这位官员说。
欧亚集团(Eurasia Group)总裁兼创始人伊恩·布雷默(Ian Bremmer)说，总统“应该从一开始就对以色列的所作所为更加直言不讳”，并补充说，“内塔尼亚胡一直在恩将仇报。”
值得注意的是，尽管以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡将出席联合国大会，但目前还没有拜登和内塔尼亚胡会面的计划。
拜登取得进展的地方是稳定与中国的关系，加强在印度太平洋地区的联盟:拜登与澳大利亚、英国和美国建立了新的安全伙伴关系;他将日本和韩国这两个有着坎坷历史的国家聚集在一起，与美国在国防和经济合作方面进行合作;越南将美国的外交关系提升到了最高水平。(拜登本周将会见越南总书记。)
所有这些关系都是拜登对抗中国在该地区影响力的战略的一部分。
“这些伙伴关系不针对任何国家，”拜登在联合国大会上说。"他们是自由、开放、安全、和平的印度-太平洋的基石."
Biden reflects on leaving 2024 race, mixed foreign policy legacy in final UNGA address
President Joe Biden delivered his farewell address to world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, seeking to burnish his foreign policy legacy amid international turmoil.
"This is the fourth time I've had the great honor speaking to this assembly as president of the United States," Biden said as he began his remarks. "It will be my last. I've seen a remarkable sweep of history."
Biden also took a moment, near the end of his speech, to poignantly reflect on his decision to end his campaign for reelection.
"There's so much more I want to get done," Biden said. "As much as I love the job, I love my country more. I decided after 50 years of public service, it's time for a new generation of leadership to take my nation forward."
"My fellow leaders, let us never forget, some things are more important than staying in power. It's your people," he said, prompting applause. "It's your people that matter the most. Never forget, we are here to serve the people, not the other way around."
Even though Biden came into office with decades of foreign policy experience, he leaves behind a mixed record.
Biden touted his administration's rebuilding of alliances, saying when he came into office he was "determined to rebuild my country's alliances and partnerships to a level not previously seen."
"We did just that," Biden said.
But the two wars that started under his administration have no clear end in sight.
His presidency is winding down as the conflict in Ukraine continues to rage and the risk of an all-out war betweenIsraeland Lebanon increases.
The president has said a top priority before the end of his administration is to end Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, but negotiations to achieve a cease-fire have stalled.
Tuesday's speech marked one of his last high-profile chances to rally world leaders.
"Will we sustain our support to help Ukraine win this war and preserve its freedom, or walk away, let aggression be renewed and a nation be destroyed? I know my answer," Biden said. "We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away and we will not let up on our support for not Ukraine."
Both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet separately with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House later this week. Harris will not be at UNGA.
With nearly 500 people killed in Lebanon on Monday alone from Israeli strikes, the escalating tensions in the Middle East and the threat of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah, will surely overshadow other topics at the U.N.
Speaking on the escalation, Biden warned in his speech that "full-scale war is not in anyone's interest."
"A diplomatic solution is still possible," he said. "In fact, it remains the only path to lasting security to allow the residents of both countries to return to their homes on the border safely. That's what we're working tirelessly to achieve."
A senior administration said this meeting will allow for a range of officials to be in the same room to talk about the situation.
"This is one of the advantages of U.N. General Assembly. You literally have the whole world here. So, when you do have crises of the day, they'll be addressed. And I have no doubt that the situation in the Middle East will be an important theme in a lot of a lot of the meetings, not just that the president has, but other senior U.S. officials who will be convening to talk about -- about various aspects of the crisis and what we can do to stabilize the situation," the official said.
"I think it's an opportunity to talk about what we have achieved and what we what we still need to do, given a situation that is just heartbreaking where hostages have not been returned, the humanitarian situation in Gaza, and as you know, just such a sensitive issue, and such a delicate and dangerous situation between Israel and Lebanon right now," the official said.
The president "should've been more outspoken from the beginning about what Israel is doing," said Ian Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, adding that "Netanyahu constantly bites the hand that feeds him."
Notably, even though Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be at UNGA, there are currently no plans for Biden and Netanyahu to meet on the sidelines.
Where Biden has made strides is in stabilizing relations with China and strengthening alliances in the Indo-Pacific region: Biden launched a new security partnership with Australia, the U.K. and U.S. (AUKUS); he brought together Japan and South Korea -- two countries with a rocky history -- to work with the U.S. on defense and economic cooperation; Vietnam upgraded the U.S. to its highest level of diplomatic relations. (Biden is meeting with Vietnam's general secretary this week.)
All of those relationships are part of Biden's strategy to counter China's influence in the region.
"These partnerships are not against any nation," Biden said at UNGA. "They're building blocks for a free, open, secure, peaceful Indo-Pacific."
