Opening a “new era” in US-ASEAN relations

Mr. Biden said on the second day of the meeting: “A large part of our world history over the next 50 years will be written in the ASEAN countries and our relationship with you is the future. future years and decades to come”.

This year’s ASEAN-US Special Summit is the first time ASEAN leaders have met in Washington and also the first meeting hosted by the US since 2016.

According to Reuters news agency, this also marks the first time that US President Joe Biden has met ASEAN leaders face-to-face since taking office in January 2021. The Biden administration hopes the effort will show Washington remains focused on the Indo-Pacific region.

This year’s ASEAN-US Special Summit is the first time that ASEAN leaders will meet in Washington. Photo: Reuters

Earlier, US Vice President Kamala Harris reaffirmed that Washington shares ASEAN’s common vision of order and the rule of law at sea, including freedom of navigation and overflight and international law in the region. .

Ms. Harris emphasized that Southeast Asia remains one of the US’s priorities. The US Coast Guard will deploy patrol boats to the area to train and deal with illegal fishing activities. Vice President Harris said that the US will be present in Southeast Asia for many generations to come.

Ms. Harris said the US will continue to work with ASEAN to deal with the threat from Covid-19 and fund more than 115 million doses of vaccines for this region. Harris also said that the US and ASEAN need to demonstrate common ambition on climate issues, accelerate the transition to clean energy and meet infrastructure needs in a sustainable way.

The Biden administration a day earlier announced a $150 million support package for new initiatives in Southeast Asia, including cooperation in maritime security and clean energy. The leaders of ASEAN and the United States agreed to support the establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and expressed their hope that this relationship would develop in a substantive, effective and mutually beneficial manner.