Drawing a close to the 20-year war in Afghanistan, U.S. President Joe Biden is turning his eyes on the intensifying competition with China, bringing into play new mechanisms like the "Quad" group of Australia, India, Japan and the United States as well as a security partnership among Australia, Britain and the United States.

But the Biden administration may need more clarity in its Indo-Pacific strategy, which it says will be released in the fall, with the recent launch of the three-way partnership dubbed AUKUS triggering a huge diplomatic rift with the oldest U.S. ally France, and questions raised over how the two coalitions will evolve.

"While there may have been some strategic thinking to link European allies and Asian allies through AUKUS, if you end up angering a very important pillar in the region, France, I must say no holistic strategy existed there," said Michito Tsuruoka, an associate professor at Japan's Keio University with expertise on international security and European politics.