The Barack Obama administration views Southeast Asia as an ascendant region, in more than economic term, according to a US newspaper.
In its article entitled “US-ASEAN summit: An opportunity for re-arrangement with Southeast Asia” published on Sept. 24, the Hill newspaper wrote: “Repeat visits by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defence Secretary Robert Gates as well as President Barack Obama’s presence at the 2009 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Singapore have made it clear.”
ASEAN expects the United States will be more fruitfully engaged in the region, said the paper.
According to the New-York based paper, Vietnam ’s ASEAN chairmanship offers US diplomats an opening.
“ Vietnam sees ASEAN as an inclusive bloc, one that wants to deepen internal relations while broadening external ones,” the paper wrote, affirming Vietnam ’s main priorities of regional stability and prosperity coincide with those of the US .
It further said that the 2009 Lower Mekong Initiative, put forward by Washington , which brings together Vietnam , Laos , Cambodia and Thailand on non-traditional security concerns, has helped these countries to have a foreign policy chair with multiple legs, including environment, health, education and infrastructure development.
According to the newspaper, US officials recognise that ASEAN is the door to enter the region, and military cooperation between the US and several ASEAN countries, including Vietnam has improved significantly over the years./.
In its article entitled “US-ASEAN summit: An opportunity for re-arrangement with Southeast Asia” published on Sept. 24, the Hill newspaper wrote: “Repeat visits by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defence Secretary Robert Gates as well as President Barack Obama’s presence at the 2009 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Singapore have made it clear.”
ASEAN expects the United States will be more fruitfully engaged in the region, said the paper.
According to the New-York based paper, Vietnam ’s ASEAN chairmanship offers US diplomats an opening.
“ Vietnam sees ASEAN as an inclusive bloc, one that wants to deepen internal relations while broadening external ones,” the paper wrote, affirming Vietnam ’s main priorities of regional stability and prosperity coincide with those of the US .
It further said that the 2009 Lower Mekong Initiative, put forward by Washington , which brings together Vietnam , Laos , Cambodia and Thailand on non-traditional security concerns, has helped these countries to have a foreign policy chair with multiple legs, including environment, health, education and infrastructure development.
According to the newspaper, US officials recognise that ASEAN is the door to enter the region, and military cooperation between the US and several ASEAN countries, including Vietnam has improved significantly over the years./.
