“Duterte has not given any signals that he sees abandoning or substantially weakening the alliance with the United States as a way to reach a better deal with China, nor should he”.
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The two leaders interacted briefly on Wednesday night during a dinner for leaders gathered here in the Lao capital for a summit, but exchanged only “pleasantries”, according to a White House official.
Obama says the US wants to build on its partnership with Southeast Asia and to promote a “rules-based order” in the region.
Then there is the continuing uncertainty over the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal that has been hailed as an integral component of the United States pivot.
The Republican nominee said Russian President Vladimir Putin has been a better leader than Obama and that US generals have been “reduced to rubble” on the commander-in-chief’s watch.
“His heart is in the right place, and his intent is in the right place, but the politics of trade will muck up his legacy”, said Victor Cha, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies who served as Asia director in the George W. Bush administration. Obama has endorsed Hillary Clinton and has said he plans to campaign full-force for the Democrat before the November 8 election.
In his final news conference in Laos on Thursday, Obama was asked about the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, which has still not closed despite the USA president stating that he would do so when he was first elected in 2008.
The stark truth is that the Asia rebalance remains a work in progress, and Obama will hand it off to his successor with no guarantees. In a joint statement issued by leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, members were expected to issue a mild rebuke to China without referencing it by name. Obama said a shrinking the population of the camp is priority and that the existence of Guantanamo Bay is “a recruitment tool for terrorist organizations”.
Trump has bashed China and Japan on trade, and he has suggested that the United States’ defense treaties with Japan and South Korea, predicated on USA military bases in both countries, are too expensive for US taxpayers. He said that in recent years, the USA and Asia had solidified “unprecedented” cooperation that will create more prosperity for their peoples.
But questions hang over whether Obama’s pro-Asia stance will be sustained.
From left: Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, U.S. President Barack Obama, Laos’ Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Philippines Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay, Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen.
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The region clearly remains important to Obama on a personal level. Its the last of 10 trips Obama paid as president to Asia, where Obama lived as a youngster with his mother in Indonesia.
