The Latest on Southeast Asia: July 21, 2022

U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi both attended the Group of 20 (G20) foreign ministers’ meeting in Indonesia on July 7 and 8. Blinken and Wang’s five-hour meeting and their travels in the region served to outline their respective visions for multilateral cooperation, economic recovery, and the regional order. This flurry of diplomatic activity demonstrates that both superpowers remain committed to increasing their presence in Southeast Asia.

Prior to the G20 meeting, Wang embarked on an 11-day trip to Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Malaysia to discuss Chinese investments and infrastructure projects in the region. During his travels, Wang attended the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Bagan, Myanmar, and delivered a policy speech on China-ASEAN cooperation at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta. Wang’s trip was meant to strengthen China’s bilateral relationships and demonstrate its commitment to the region in the first year following the establishment of its comprehensive strategic partnership with ASEAN.

Blinken, meanwhile, embarked on his first official trip to Thailand after the G20 meeting. His visit came on the heels of several high-level exchanges between Thailand and the United States, including Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s visit to Washington in May, the U.S.-Thailand Strategic and Defense Dialogue the same month, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s trip in June to reinforce the United States-Thailand defense relationship. Secretary Blinken’s trip allowed both sides to reaffirm the importance of the alliance and led to the signing of two agreements: the U.S.-Thailand Communiqué on Strategic Alliance and Partnership, meant to reinforce the alliance in an increasingly uncertain security environment, and a memorandum of understanding promoting supply chain resilience.

During a press conference in Bangkok, Blinken expressed his dismay at the worsening crisis in Myanmar while stating that ASEAN could do more to pressure the Burmese military and hold it accountable for its actions. To reinforce this message, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink traveled to Cambodia to meet with foreign minister and ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar Prak Sokhonn. This stands in stark contrast to Wang Yi’s talks with Myanmar’s junta-appointed foreign minister Wunna Maung Lwin on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Bagan.

On the sidelines of G20 meeting, Minister Wang presented Secretary Blinken with his vision of Chinese and U.S. coexistence in the Indo-Pacific, a vision that encompassed supporting ASEAN centrality, maintaining existing regional cooperation frameworks, and promoting stability in the region. Meanwhile, Blinken’s efforts to shore up U.S. alliances, promote the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, and demonstrate Washington’s commitment to the region reflects the U.S. aim of providing Southeast Asia with alternative choices to China. The extent to which Southeast Asian partners have been wooed by either of these competing visions remains to be seen. But it is clear that the region will remain a priority for both Beijing and Washington for some time to come.

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