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Ahead of ASEAN Summit, Indonesia scans horizon of US-China rivalry
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Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc addresses regional leaders during the ASEAN Summit, held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in Hanoi on June 26. The leaders are expected to convene virtually again this week at the second ASEAN Summit. (Pool/AFP/Luong Thai Linh )
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ndonesia hopes that the United States will become a “positive force” for stability in Southeast Asia, its top diplomat said ahead of the ASEAN Summit this week, which may see a shift in the balance of the US-China rivalry and US influence in the South China Sea.
ASEAN foreign ministers met online to prepare for the upcoming ASEAN Summit meetings that Vietnam will be hosting virtually from Thursday through Sunday.
Speaking to reporters after Tuesday’s meeting, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said that Indonesia and ASEAN would certainly be ready to work together with the US to strengthen a partnership based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit.
“The partnership that we want is a partnership that upholds the principles and values of multilateralism with respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, as well as respect for international law,” she said in an online briefing.
Retno expressed Indonesia’s hopes that the US would become a positive force for the realization of peace, stability and prosperity in Southeast Asia, and become a partner in implementing the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP).
The AOIP is a strategic doctrine of inclusive cooperation that seeks to dampen US-China influence peddling in the wider region that straddles the Indian and Pacific oceans.
The minister also reiterated President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s statement on Sunday welcoming the winners of last week’s US election, president-elect Joe Biden and vice president-elect Kamala Harris, who are expected to take office in January next year.
