Biden holds meeting with ASEAN leaders
Biden holds meeting with ASEAN leaders; plans strategy against China
Two-day summit meeting of leaders of the US and Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries at the initiative of President Joe Biden
WASHINGTON: A two-day summit meeting of leaders of the US and Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries has begun at the initiative of President Joe Biden. This is the first time that ASEAN leaders have been called together in the White House. It is seen as a significant effort by the Biden administration to mobilize countries against China in the Asia-Pacific region.
US diplomacy experts said Southeast Asia is the fastest growing economic region in the world. Also, this area is the center of increasing competition between America and China. Many ASEAN member states also have conflicting relations with China. In view of this, mobilizing ASEAN is part of a special strategy. ASEAN comprises ten countries. At the start of the summit on Thursday, the US announced a special initiative of $ 150 million for that region. This amount will be spent on clean energy, maritime security and digital development.
Apart from this, the US has also prepared a regional trade framework for the region, which will be announced soon. Under this framework, norms for labor behavior and digital trade will be set. Diplomacy expert James Crabtree has said that the US has prepared such an economic plan, which will benefit ASEAN countries, while they will not have to pay any price for it. But still the US is not ready for such a trade agreement, which will make it easier for ASEAN countries to access the US market.
Therefore, different opinions have been expressed about how effective Biden’s latest initiative will be. China has a free trade agreement with ASEAN. In 2009, it overtook the US to become ASEAN’s largest trading partner. China has also promised to spend billions of dollars on infrastructure development in the region. Therefore mobilizing these countries against China is a difficult challenge. “China’s unpopularity in the region has increased over the past year,” analyst Joshua Kurlantzik of the American think-tank Council on Foreign Relations told the website axios.com. The main reason for this is its Zero Kovid policy. Despite this, it cannot be denied that China has a shadow on the ongoing discussions in Washington.
