| James Kon |
UNDER President Donald Trump’s administration, the United States of America continues to place high priority to engage with Asean member countries, with particular focus on five strategic areas of cooperation: maritime, economy, transnational issues, the role of women, and emerging leaders.
The importance of US-Asean ties will be further highlighted when President Trump meets with Asean leaders to discuss regional cooperation during the Asean Summit in Manila in November.
The reassurance given by the US in its strong commitment to engage with Asean was lauded by Daniel Shields, Charge d’Affaires and interim at the US Mission to Asean, who is currently in Brunei to meet with officials for an exchange of views on Asean-related issues, in preparation for the upcoming summit.
In an interview at the US Embassy in Brunei Darussalam, Shields described US-Asean relations as ‘deep and dynamic’, taking into account that this year marks the 40th anniversary of US-Asean ties.
The former US ambassador to Brunei Darussalam (2011-2014) told the Bulletin, “We have had vigorous exchanges with Brunei and other Asean member countries on maritime issues; we have a lot of common interests in increasing the awareness of all the countries in the region on what’s going on in the sea, and maritime cooperation on law enforcement.”
On the economic front, he said, “A good example of the ongoing US-Asean cooperation would be the Asean Single Window (ASW) on customs clearance. Asean member countries have contributed about $250 million to develop this initiative to facilitate trade within the region, and also for countries like the US which are trading with Asean.
“The US has provided over $10 million over 10 years to help facilitate the ASW, and we are delighted to see the launching move forward soon.”
On transnational issues that include crime, terrorism, drugs, human trafficking and wildlife trafficking, he said, “There is a dynamic area of exchange and cooperation between the US and Asean. We continue to conduct workshops and coordination through Asean mechanisms on these issues.
“All 10 member states are working together to fight human trafficking through the Asean Convention against Trafficking in Persons. The US law enforcement is working together with Asean to exchange information on human trafficking. We applaud the efforts that Asean has made, and we will continue to support this in any way we can.”
On combating terrorism, he noted the strong awareness between Asean and the US to step up on cooperation, in an effort to prevent problems plaguing countries such as Iraq and Syria from spreading to this region.
The Philippines, he said, “has effectively addressed the problem in Marawi, and the US would like to partner with all 10 Asean member states to counter and prevent the spread of terrorism, foreign fighters and the financing of terrorists, which can affect the stability and prosperity of the region.
“Looking at the 50th anniversary of Asean, it is very extraordinary to see the level of security and prosperity that all 10 member states were able to achieve. But there is no room for complacency, so the US will work with all of its partners mainly through bilateral channels, in terms of working with particular member states to share expertise and information. We learnt a lot from our experiences in the Middle East about ISIS, and we certainly would want to share them with the governments of Asean.”
On the role of women in Asean, he said, “I was thrilled to participate in the recent women leadership academy, which brings together women leaders from across Asean to help develop leadership skills and networking.”
On the subject of emerging leaders in the region, he said, “The US has worked with the participants of the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) in helping to develop their leadership skills and networking. Through this, the US would like to see a strong integrated Asean, while the people coming out of this programme will have the ability to network in all 10 member states and play an important role in deciding the future of Asean.”
“We are excited about the upcoming summit in Manila, and that President Trump will be coming to the Philippines to engage Asean in this commemorative summit to mark the 40th anniversary of US-Asean ties. We also see this is an opportunity to advance the excellent relationship between US and Asean.
“When the Trump administration came in, all eyes were on where the US was headed with its engagement in Asean. The first indication that the current administration would have a strong focus on Asean was when Vice-President Mike Pence visited Jakarta in April, along with the Asean Secretariat and the permanent representatives of various Asean member countries. He also held engagements with YSEALI and others. These were the first signs that Asean would be a priority in the Trump administration.
“At the ministerial level, I was with US Secretary of Defence James Mattis and Secretary of State [Rex] Tillerson in Manila, while President Trump is coming to meet with Asean leaders at the summit. This shows the US’s commitment in continuing to develop relationships with Asean.”
On the US’s withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), he said, “TPP was never Asean-focussed, although there were a number of Asean member countries like Brunei involved in TPP negotiations. With regard to US-Asean cooperation in economic engagement, the Asean Single Window is the best example of the cooperation that we have. It took more than 10 years to get to where we at now.
“The US will continue to engage with Asean in any way possible to support integration as it stands to benefit from a strong and dynamic Asean. The integration of Asean could be beneficial for US companies which may export to the region.”
Asean, he said, “Is the favourite destination for US Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The US’s cumulative FDI in Asean for a period up to 2015 is over US$270 billion, which is bigger than US investments in Japan, China, Korea and India combined. I am very optimistic for the future of economic and investment relationships between the US and Asean.”
The post US committed to strengthening Asean ties appeared first on Borneo Bulletin Online.