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America for “amity” with ASEAN

SINGAPORE: The United States has signalled its intention to chart a new course in East Asia.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced in Jakarta on Wednesday that the Obama Administration was initiating a “process” to “pursue accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation.”

The treaty, crafted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), binds the signatories to a policy of peaceful interaction with the 10-member bloc. Accession to the treaty is a prerequisite for becoming a member of the 16-nation East Asia Summit (EAS). India and China are among the EAS participants, the others being the 10 ASEAN countries, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.

Ms. Clinton’s announcement is seen in the regional diplomatic circles as a departure from the stance of the previous Bush administration that left it outside the EAS, a “leaders-driven forum.”

Welcoming the new U.S. move, ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan expressed the hope this would “end” Washington’s “diplomatic absenteeism” in East Asia. He was referring only to the absence of the U.S. from the EAS, because Washington is a long-time member of the ASEAN Regional Forum.

Ms. Clinton met Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and other leaders on Thursday, before leaving for Seoul.

The discussions centred on bilateral ties and global issues including climate change. The talks acquired importance in the context of Indonesia’s potential as “an environmental superpower,” according to diplomatic sources.

While in Jakarta, Ms. Clinton met a youth group, learnt local greetings, and spoke of Washington’s preference for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Diplomats described her visit as a “charm offensive” to woo the Islamic world. Indonesia is the largest Muslim-majority country.

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