US ambassador to Southeast Asia embarks on Indonesia | South China Sea News

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to address Tuesday in Jakarta on the Washington-Indo-Pacific route.

The Secretary of State of the United States Antony Blinken has committed “excessively” to Indonesia, the country’s foreign minister has said, as the US ambassador began a trip to Southeast Asia amid growing tensions. and China in the province.

Blinken met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Monday and stressed the importance of “modern cooperation” between the two countries, “The US government said in a statement.

Blinken praised “Indonesian leadership” in the Indo-Pacific, calling the country “the world’s third-largest democracy and a strong supporter of international law,” he said.

After Blinken’s meeting with Indonesian president Jokowi, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said Washington appeared interested in establishing an alliance with Jakarta, including infrastructure.

“The US commitment was well documented,” Retno told reporters, without elaborating.

The US Secretary of State is preparing to address the Indonesian capital on the road to Biden Indo-Pacific Tuesday morning at the same time.

Blinken will also stop in Malaysia and Thailand on his regional tour, which has seen growing competition between Washington and Beijing.

Daniel Kritenbrink, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, told reporters ahead of the Blinken visit that the US was planning to engage with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) on “unprecedented standards”.

President Joe Biden took part in the US-ASEAN summit in October, I promise deepening the alliance and bloc. The US has already mentioned aid to other ASEAN countries in disputes with China via the South China Sea, a major trade route that Beijing claims to own.

Sunday, US, Australia and Japan too announced an experiment to provide subsidies for underwater cable development to improve internet access in the three small Pacific states of Nauru, Kiribati and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Blinken’s visit to Southeast Asia came less than a week after US, Canada and Australia announced diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, on the issue of human rights abuses by the Chinese government, including violence Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang province.

The US criticized China killing people against Uighurs – a case that the Chinese government has denied. China has rejected the embassy’s dismissal as a “political fraud” contrary to the spirit of the Olympics.

China protested earlier this year working in partnership with the US and UK to supply Australia with nuclear arsenals. Beijing also said it was concerned about Biden’s efforts to promote it Quad Alliance and India, Japan and Australia after the White House held a summit in September.

Amidst the many challenges, Biden last month did a a real meeting and Chinese President Xi Jinping, calling for a ceasefire as they work together on similar interests in Beijing.

Ahead of the meeting Xi warned about a return to the hardships of the Cold War period in Asia-Pacific.

“The Asia-Pacific region cannot and should not return to the fight against the fragmentation of the Cold War period,” he said.