Biden works on friendships with Asian countries on Cambodia trip. Here’s what he’s doing next.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – President Joe Biden is seeking to win friends and influence Southeast Asian nations as he ratchets up efforts to isolate Russia and tame China during a weekend visit to Cambodia.
Biden invited countries in the region to the White House in May and emphasized his administration’s desire to build stronger relations in remarks at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ annual summit.
Past administrations have been criticized for not attending the gathering that China’s Xi Jinping usually visits but won’t attend this year. He’ll be in Bali at the G-20 Summit, where he plans to meet Biden, and APEC, which Vice President Kamala Harris is attending, later in the week.
Xi’s absence in Cambodia presents an opportunity for Biden to convince countries that their economies would suffer greatly if China causes supply chain disruptions by invading Taiwan.
The latest:
- Where’s Biden? Attending the East Asia Summit in Cambodia. He flies to Bali, Indonesia on Sunday afternoon.
- Who he’ll meet: Biden is hosting individual meetings with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan and President Yoon Suk-yeol of South Korea and a joint meeting with both nations before he departs Phnom Penh.
- What he’s been up to: He attended a gala hosted by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. Biden entered the dinner with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
- Old acquaintances: Biden gave Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong an enthusiastic greeting at ASEAN. Lee was prime minister while Biden was vice president and visited the White House in March.
- Dinner menu: Courses included Meang Lau — “savory pork shoulder, tangy tamarind, roasted peanuts and aromatic ginger rolled in fresh tapioca leaves” and Wild Mekong Lobster — “stir-fried river lobster, topped with aromatic herbs, served over turmeric-infused sticky rice.”
What’s about to happen
Leaders of the ten countries that make up ASEAN – minus Myanmar – are meeting with government officials from Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the U.S.
A military dictatorship overthrew the Myanmar government last year in a coup. Conditions have rapidly deteriorated, as the military junta in charge tries to stifle dissent. ASEAN leaders have sought to implement a five-point peace plan in Myanmar that the junta agreed to initially but has show little interest in implementing.
“We remain committed to seeing the return of democracy in Myanmar and working with the ASEAN,” Biden said Saturday.
Top takeaways
Building better relations with South East Asian nations is one of Biden’s top national security concerns.
His administration calls the approach “friendshoring.” It’s intended to help the U.S. form stronger alliances with nations that can help discourage China from taking military action against Taiwan.
What they are saying
- “The most important thing that the U.S. can do is usually just show up to these things and show face,” said Erin Murphy, deputy director and senior fellow with the economics program at CSIS.
- Nuclear deterrence is one area Biden’s administration believes the U.S. and China can work together on.