INTENSIFIED ASEAN-US INTERACTION AUGURS WELL FOR BILATERAL TIES

By Manik Mehta

NEW YORK, Feb 22 (Bernama) -- The growing interaction between the US and
members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) augurs well for
the future development of relations between the two sides.

With the increasing visits, the US is also deflecting past criticism of
"ignoring" the region and concentrating on China and India.

The just-concluded visit of Asean secretary-general, Surin Pitsuwan, to the
US is portrayed as an expression of the growing mutual interest in each other by
the Asean countries and the US, the biggest market for many of the Asean
members.

Pitsuwan addressed the question "Can Asean lead the Asian integration?" at
the Asia Society in New York, which many considered a call at this institution a
sine qua non for visiting Asian dignitaries, considering that many of America’s
corporate icons are also among its staunchest supporters.

He highlighted the fact that through regional arrangements such as the
recently-established East Asia Free Trade Area and a comprehensive Economic
Partnership, the grouping was expected to reach economic integration by 2015.

In a question-and-answer session with the president of Asia Society, Vishaka
Desai, Pitsuwan said as Asean worked towards its own economic integration, it
should also be able to lead the Asian integration.

The level of integration achieved by Asean, though still lagging behind the
European Union, nevertheless, compares favourably with other groupings such
as the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation, which is still
languishing with the failure of its members to move towards achieving even a low
level of economic cooperation.

But questions were also raised over Asean’s significance in the face of the
growing US-Chinese rivalry.

Recent tensions over the meeting between President Barack Obama and the
Dalai Lama or the US administration’s proposed military aid package to Taiwan
illustrate the heightened rivalry -- and also on the enlarged grouping called
the Asean + 3 which includes China.

He also gave his assessment of the practical impact of the newly-created
Asean Commission on Human Rights on improving the human rights in the region.

While there will be differences between the US and the Asean members on a
number of issues -- Myanmar, in particular, had come in for criticism in the
past for its refusal to introduce democratic reforms and release political
prisoners.

Pitsuwan’s visit is being assessed by US Asean experts as a "welcome
gesture" which will have a "positive effect" on opinion makers and others about
the Asean region not only for trade and business but also for political
cooperation to offset the growing economic and military influence of China.

Prior to Pitsuwan’s visit, a business delegation from the Washington-based
US-Asean Business Council visited Indonesia.

The delegation, comprising 62 executives from 27 leading American companies,
spent four days in Indonesia scouting for business opportunities in that
country’s infrastructure sector.

According to Washington-based sources, Obama was expected to visit Indonesia
later this year.

A number of high-level delegations from the Asean region visited the US last
year.

The list of delegations to come will increase in the future.

In April, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak will be
visiting Washington with a large delegation to participate in an international
nuclear security conference.

"The visit should provide an impetus to further deepening of bilateral
cooperation between Malaysia and the US and help understand each other better,"
a US official said.

-- BERNAMA