US, ASEAN elevate ties as Biden seeks to counter China

US President Joe Biden has announced that the US and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will elevate their diplomatic ties to a “comprehensive strategic partnership” as Washington seeks to counter China’s influence in the region.

Speaking at the ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh, Biden confirmed the strengthened partnership and also said he had requested $850 million of investment for new initiatives to “strengthen ASEAN and increase connectivity across South-East Asia.” “ASEAN is at the heart of my administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy.

And we continue to strengthen our commitment,” he said.

He added that ASEAN and the US will work together to tackle the “biggest issues of our time,” including climate change and threats to the rule of law, while building “an Indo-Pacific that’s free and open, stable and prosperous, resilient and secure.” The new initiatives include the US working together with ASEAN states to develop “an integrated electric vehicle ecosystem in South-East Asia” to help the region further develop clean energy and meet ambitious emissions reduction targets.

Biden also announced the launch of a “US-ASEAN platform for infrastructure and connectivity in the region.” Washington’s ramped-up support for the 10-member bloc comes amid an ongoing US-China rivalry for influence in the South-East Asia region.

In 2021, China elevated its partnership with ASEAN to a similar status, while in a meeting with Hun Sen on Wednesday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang suggested promoting the strategic partnership between the two nations to “a higher level,” according to a press release.

Biden’s attendance at the ASEAN summit has been dubbed as a return to normal US diplomacy after former US president Donald Trump repeatedly snubbed key meetings in the region.

In May, Biden held a summit with ASEAN leaders in Washington, in which an agreement was reached to elevate diplomatic ties during the summit in November.

Biden is also expected to hold a trilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Sunday to discuss security issues in the Indo-Pacific as well as North Korea’s missile and nuclear programmes.

ASEAN is a union of 10 South-East Asian countries which promotes diplomatic cooperation on economic, political and security issues.

The union has an estimated total population of about 668 million.

-Ranjith Perera-