Pompeo: US not asking Asean allies to ‘choose’ on China

US SECRETARY of State Mike Pompeo insisted on Thursday that Washi ng ton was not a sk i ng Sout heast Asian nations to “choose” bet ween his countr y and riva l power China, as he t ra i led a rebooted secu r it y a nd t rade st rateg y at a Ba ng kok summit.

The denuclearisation of the Korea n Pen i nsu la, a bit ter t rade wa r between the superpowers and open access to contested seas dominated talks between Pompeo and his Chinese counter pa r t Wang Yi on t he sidelines of a summit of Southeast Asia’s top diplomats.

Pompeo is tasked with reassuring Asian a llies t hat t he US remains a key player in t he reg ion as China bui lds up its milita r y presence in d isputed sea s a nd a i rspace a nd cements its economic and politica l primacy across the region.

T he r i v a l r y bet ween t he t wo super powers is f ra med by a t rade war that has cramped global growth, a nd s e e ded u ncer t a i nt y ac ros s Asia’s economies.

Pompeo and Wang shook hands and smiled before the brief talks.

Both later played down the rifts between their nations, with Wang describing the meeting as a “deep communication” that “has helped to increase our mutual understanding”.

“There may be various kinds of issues and problems between China and the United States,” he said.

“But no matter how many problems . . . we all need to sit down and continue to communicate.”

In short remarks, Pompeo later insisted that the US was not forcing Southeast Asian nations to “choose between countries”.

“Our engagement in this region has not been and will not be a zero-sum exercise,” he said, adding that “our interests simply naturally converge with yours to our mutual benefit”.

Beijing’s orbit

Among the tension points with China is the South China Sea, an area Beijing believes to be its orbit and outside the US sphere of influence.

Chi na is accused of deploy i ng warships, militarising outposts and ramming fishing vessels in contested waters, one of t he world’s key shipping routes and which the US is desperate to keep open.

Sever a l r i v a l Sout hea st A si a n claimants to t he sea say Beijing has used its militar y, economic and diplomatic hef t to slow progress on a bi ndi ng Code of Conduct i n t he f lashpoint zone.

The US wants guarantees of open seas and has offered its support to several of the claimant nations in the face of Chinese aggression.

The administration of President Dona ld Tr ump, which pul led out f rom a massive Asia-Pacif ic t rade pact, is pushing an “Indo-Pacif ic” st rateg y of bi latera l commercia l deals and securit y support for t he region.

China rebuffs US intentions in the region and is driving through its own sweeping trade-pact for the region.

On Wednesday Wang described Southeast Asia as China’s “neighbourhood” and – in barely concealed warning to the US – urged “non-regional countries” to not “sow distrust” in the area.

US-led efforts to tease North Korea into ending its nuclea r a mbit ions were a lso covered in discussions, with Beijing’s leading diplomat welcoming the high-v isibilit y summits between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.