There was no bigger news in the world last week than the re-election of
US President Barack Obama to a second term in office in what was considered one
of the most hotly contested elections in the history of the nation.
The re-election of Mr Obama
should be music to the ears of Asian nations from Japan to Iraq, and also great
news for Asean members, whose profile has been on the rise ever since his first
term when he stressed the American desire for greater engagement with the region.
Asean had been on the back burner
during the previous Republican presidency. As a result, some countries cooled
in their desire to be close to the world’s biggest superpower and gradually
began to align themselves with the other emerging superpower, China.
The process of regaining
confidence from the region by Washington has taken nearly four years, and
thanks are due in no small part to Mr Obama’s able Secretary of State, Hillary
Clinton. Her persistence, empathy and charm were the key drivers behind the
build-up of new trust and confidence over the first term of the Obama
administration.
Mrs Clinton, who has openly said
that she would not return to the position if Mr Obama was elected for the
second term, would be one of the biggest losses to the administration, and her
forthright stand on issues that matter to Asia will be greatly missed.
Even in the last few weeks ahead
of her departure, Mrs Clinton along with US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta will
travel to Thailand, the first such delegation from the Pentagon since 2008, and
then to Cambodia next week. The trip is part of Washington’s effort to help the
Asean region recover its nerve after the fiasco of the July summit in Phnom
Penh, when perceived pressure from China on the host country scuttled a joint
communiqué calling for all parties in the South China Sea disputes to start
behaving more responsibly.
The United States has also sought
to reassure allies in the region that it will sustain and expand its military
presence, through a much-discussed “pivot” toward Asia. But some partners
question if the Americans have the financial means to back up the vow given
fiscal pressures at home.
Apart from this Mr Obama is
taking the bold step of making Southeast Asia the destination of his first
post-election trip, including a visit to Myanmar, the first ever by a sitting
US president. His trip will begin in Thailand this coming Saturday, followed by
Cambodia on Nov 18 and Myanmar on Nov 19 — a signal in itself of the importance
the new administration is giving to the region.
All this comes at a time when
tensions are flaring in the traditional focal point of the United States — the
Middle East, where US officials acknowledged last week that Iranian fighter
jets intercepted an American surveillance drone over the Gulf and fired at it
at least twice.
In any case, the continuity of
the administration in the United States comes at no better time than this year
as Asia’s superpower is undergoing its own changes. The change in China, which
occurs once in a decade, began last week and will culminate when Xi Jinping
takes the helm Communist Party in March 2013.
A change in leadership in China
is unlikely to mean much change in policy, but at least it breaks the
continuity of the previous administration and gives new leaders a chance to
make their mark. A similar break in the US with the election of Republican
candidate Mitt Romney could have spelt disaster for Asia, which wants to see a
more balanced approach from the two superpowers that are in competition to gain
favour in the region.
With so much goodwill having been
built up over the previous term by the Obama administration, it would only be
appropriate to appoint a capable person whose goals and aspirations are aligned
with Asia’s as the successor to Mrs Clinton.
The name of Massachusetts senator
and incumbent chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, John Kerry, has
surfaced, and he would be an appropriate choice to continue the work of his
predecessor.
Most countries might have their
doubts about the continuity of US foreign policy of the US, and who’s to blame
them, for the US has had a habit of changing policy in line with each change of
administration. It would be best for the US to pursue foreign policies that
remain intact no matter whether Democrats or Republicans control the White
House, because such assurances will give other countries more to think before
they make a 100% commitment to one particular superpower.
But as they say, no one can clap
with one hand, and therefore it is necessary for Asia to take its interests in
the long term into consideration and look at working with the Obama
administration for the long-term benefit of the region.
Umesh Pandey
Business & Investment Opportunities
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