With President Barack Obama’s departure to the Asian region on Thursday, November 12, his first official visit to a region he knew well, when he was living in Indonesia as a child his deputy national security adviser for strategic communication Ben Rhodes him as the first U.S. president with “an Asia-Pacific orientation.”
Obama is the first U.S. president to have lived in Asia as a child, and that unique perspective will help shape his nine-day trip to the region visiting Japan, Singapore, China and South Korea.
He is expected to emphasize the importance of Asian nations as vital U.S. partners on major issues such as economic growth, nuclear non-proliferation, the war in Afghanistan and climate change, officials said in a briefing this week on eve of his departure.
Increasing U.S. exports to the Asian region expected to grow by more than 7 percent in 2010 will be an important topic, said Michael Froman, deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs.
Asia "already takes about a quarter of our exports, and those exports are expected to increase as the region grows" Froman said. The result could be an increase of "hundreds of thousands" in the current 1.6 million U.S. jobs linked to Asian exports, he said.
Agency news reports confirm that the itinerary includes formal talks with Asian leaders as a group and individually, a bilateral meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, and the first participation by a U.S. president in a summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) economic alliance.
In addition, Obama's itinerary reflects his personal ties to Asia with a bilateral meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, where Obama lived from 1967 to 1971.
The U.S. during Bush administration’s second term restored military assistance to Indonesia and considered a Muslim ally outside of the volatile Middle East theatre in its Global War on Terrorism.
The president will meet with new Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, Medvedev and Yudhoyono, and will take part in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and ASEAN summits.
After years of refusing direct talks with Myanmar, also known as Burma, the United States has indicated a possible re-engagement with the military regime it considers repressive for cracking down on political opposition, including the National League for Democracy led by detained Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi.
"The statement we're trying to make here is that we're not going to let the Burmese tail wag the ASEAN dog," said Jeffrey Bader, the National Security Council's senior director for East Asian affairs. "We're going to meet with all 10 and we're not going to punish the other nine simply because Burma is in the room, but this is not a bilateral."
In China, Obama will continue efforts to define and strengthen the relationship with the world's largest emerging economy, which has a growing influence in Asia, Bader said. "We see it as a relationship where we're obviously going to have differences, where we are going to be competitors in certain respects," he said. "But we want to maximize areas where we can work together because the global challenges will simply not be met if we don't."
Bader cited North Korea's nuclear weapons program, the economy, climate change, human rights and Afghanistan as among the top issues for the China swing. On human rights, Bader said Obama is likely to address "freedom of expression, access to information, freedom of religion, rule of law, and certainly Tibet."
Obama will make clear to Hu that he intends to meet in the future with the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, Bader said. China, which rejects Tibetan aspirations for autonomy, opposes such high-level contacts with the Dalai Lama.
On North Korea, the State Department announced Tuesday that U.S. officials will travel to the country by the end of the year to seek a resumption of broader talks on ending the Pyongyang government's nuclear program.
The Obama administration has claimed initial progress in its strategy of forging an international effort including China, South Korea and other countries to put pressure on North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions.
Here is the itinerary for his trip, according to top aides:
Nov. 12 - Obama leaves Washington, and stops in Alaska to meet with troops at Elmendorf Air Force Base.
Nov. 13-14 - Tokyo - Obama arrives in Tokyo on Nov. 13, and holds a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama at about 7 p.m. local time (1000 GMT), followed by a joint press conference.
On Nov. 14 - Obama will make a major speech at Suntory Hall in Tokyo at 10 a.m. (0100 GMT), in which he will discuss his view of U.S. engagement in Asia and reaffirm the strength of Washington's alliance with Japan.
Later in the day, Obama will meet with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko.
Nov. 14-15 - Singapore - Obama travels to Singapore the evening of Nov. 14.
On Nov. 15, he will hold a bilateral meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and then go to the leaders meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
At about 2 p.m. (0600 GMT) the same day, Obama will hold a bilateral meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, and then hold what the White House says is the first meeting between a U.S. president and all 10 leaders of the 10 Southeast Asian countries that make up ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Finally on Nov. 15, Obama will hold a bilateral meeting with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Nov. 15-18 – Shanghai and Beijing - G
Obama travels to Shanghai the evening of Nov. 15, On Monday, Nov. 16, he will meet with the city's mayor, and then hold an event in which he will have a dialogue with Chinese youth, speaking to them, taking questions and hearing directly from them. He travel to Beijing Monday evening, and will have dinner with President Hu Jintao.
On Nov. 17, Obama will hold a bilateral with Hu, followed by a joint press conference, after which he will sightsee in Beijing. There will be a state dinner that night.
On Nov. 18, Obama will hold a bilateral meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, and do more sightseeing, before traveling to South Korea.
Nov. 18-19 – Seoul, Obama arrives in Seoul the night of Nov. 18. The morning of the 19th, he holds a bilateral meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, after which the two will hold a press conference.
Obama will then meet with U.S. troops stationed in Korea, before leaving on his trip back to the United States, where he is scheduled to arrive early on Nov. 20.
- Asian Tribune -
Comments
President Obama will be at
President Obama will be at ease in Asia. However, some of his aides need an orientation programme to understand the mindset and the diversities in the Asia-Pacific region. Sri Lanka is fortunate to get a capable US ambassador with prior experience in Bangladesh who understands the living conditions and the challenges faced by Governments in South Asia.