US Pursuing Renewed Engagement In Asia-Pacific

United States Pursuing Renewed Engagement In Asia-Pacific

By Merle David Kellerhals Jr. Staff Writer

Washington - The United States is pursuing a new era of strengthened engagement in the Asia-Pacific region based on mutual interests and mutual respect, President Obama says.

As an Asia-Pacific nation, the United States will be involved in the discussions that are shaping the future of the region, and will participate fully in regional multilateral organizations as they evolve with the changing challenges of the 21st century, Obama said in a major address to East Asian nations in Tokyo on November 14.

The president is on a four-nation, nine-day trip to meet with the leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum and the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Singapore, as well as for direct talks with the leaders of Japan, China and South Korea.

His trip will include bilateral meetings with leaders from Singapore and Indonesia and a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on the sidelines of the APEC forum. The breadth of the issues is at least as wide as the region itself, from nuclear nonproliferation to climate change and better human rights, according to White House advisers.

Obama acknowledged that in recent years the United States has been less engaged in the multilateral security and economic organizations of East Asia, but he emphasized in his address to 1,500 guests in Suntory Hall that those days have passed.

His first stop was in Tokyo for consultations with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama on the U.S.-Japanese alliance before he traveled to Singapore. Obama said he regards the alliance with Japan as the cornerstone of U.S. engagement throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

"We seek this deeper and broader engagement because we know our collective future depends on it," he said.

CHINA'S EMERGENCE

In speaking to the region, Obama outlined a vision for U.S-Chinese relations focused on shared interests and practical cooperation.

"We welcome China's effort to play a greater role on the world stage - a role in which their growing economy is joined by growing responsibility," he said.

China has hosted the Six-Party Talks process that is designed to convince the regime in North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons and long-range missile development program, has promoted security and stability in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and is heavily committed to a global nonproliferation regime, Obama said. China has also been an active participant in the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies that have been meeting since November 2008 to find ways to end the global economic crisis and bring about a rapid recovery.

"The United States does not seek to contain China, nor does a deeper relationship with China mean a weakening of our bilateral alliances," he said. "On the contrary, the rise of a strong, prosperous China can be a source of strength for the community of nations."

U.S.-ASIAN ENGAGEMENT

Obama said the first issue that Asia-Pacific nations must address is strengthening the global economic recovery by pursuing growth that is balanced and sustained. The world's leading economies must avoid the cycle of rapid expansion and contraction that led to the current economic crisis, the president said. One of the strongest lessons to emerge from the crisis has been that the global economy can no longer rely on a U.S. economy driven by consumer spending and an Asian economy driven by exports.

The G20 nations meeting recently in Pittsburgh acknowledged that a new strategy calling for balanced economic growth among nations is more effective than past strategies in avoiding the boom-to-bust cycle, Obama said. For the United States, this new strategy means saving more and spending less, reforming the financial system and reducing the long-term deficit. Deficit reduction has been a major concern of China and other nations that have invested in U.S. securities.

"For Asia, striking this better balance will provide an opportunity for workers and consumers to enjoy higher standards of living that their remarkable increases in productivity have made possible," Obama said.

"For decades, the United States has had one of the most open markets in the world, and that openness has helped to fuel the success of so many countries in this region and others over the last century," he said. "In this new era, opening other markets around the globe will be critical not just to America's prosperity, but to the world's."

NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION

Obama told East Asians that an escalating nuclear arms race in the region would undermine decades of growing security and prosperity. As part of Obama's vision of a nuclear-free world, the United States and Russia are negotiating a treaty to replace the expiring Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START I, which includes drastically reduced nuclear arsenals for both nations and the means to deliver them.

Obama said that strengthening the global nonproliferation regime embodied in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty does not single out any one nation, but calls on all nations to meet their responsibilities, including North Korea and Iran.

"For decades, North Korea has chosen a path of confrontation and provocation, including the pursuit of nuclear weapons," Obama said. "We will not be cowed by threats, and we will continue to send a clear message through our actions, and not just our words: North Korea's refusal to meet its international obligations will lead only to less security - not more."

The United States and its partners are prepared, Obama said, to offer North Korea a better path with a better future.

A transcript of the president's speech ( http://www.america.gov/st/texttrans-english/2009/November/20091113213142ptellivremos0.6597515.html ) is available on America.gov. For more on the president's trip, see East Asia & the Pacific ( http://www.america.gov/world/easia.html ).

(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)

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