Asean-us Relations Need To Be Elevated To Strategic Partnership - Analyst

WASHINGTON D.C, May 11 (Bernama) -- ASEAN and United States need to elevate their relationship from the grouping partner to a strategic partnership, says an international affairs analyst. Chief Executive of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Herizal Hazri said the move would enhance their ties to a higher level for mutual benefit. “Strategic partnership will make them more serious, more focused with deliverable results,” he told Malaysian journalists ahead of the two-day ASEAN-US Special Summit here starting Thursday (Friday in Malaysia). Towards this end, he said ASEAN and US need to draw a workable plan of action. The special summit marks the 45th anniversary of the ASEAN-US dialogue partnership and the second special summit hosted by the US president in this country after the then-president Barack Obama welcomed ASEAN leaders in California in February 2016. “We need a reliable, trusted and respected partnership with the US,” he said. Herizal said the US needs to give a clear direction on its future relationship with ASEAN, a bloc of 10 southeast Asian countries. He said the special summit will be held against the backdrop of global uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “All countries are finding ways to rebuild their economies. This summit provides such opportunities. “It is almost a reset for ASEAN when they meet with one of the largest ASEAN dialogue partners - the US,” he said. The special summit is also to be held amid the rivalry of major powers - US-China and Russia-Ukraine, the analyst said. “There are some movements on the geopolitical front as well as the economic front,” he said. Training his sight on how ASEAN should deal with superpowers, Herizal said the grouping needs to continue its firm stand when dealing with them. “ASEAN needs to continue to be stubborn. ASEAN will remain neutral. We will not take sides. We are stronger when we are together,” he said. Herizal also has a special message for those with misperceptions that ASEAN was a small bloc and not important. “We are here because we are invited. The fact that we are here shows that we are important,” he said, adding that ASEAN is still a functioning bloc with a strategic location with the Strait of Malacca being one of the most important shipping lanes in the world. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. -- BERNAMA