Khmerization

Wed Jul 22, 2009

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks with Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva at Government House in Bangkok July 21, 2009. Clinton is on a three-day visit to Thailand.

REUTERS/Sakchai Lalit/Pool

By Purple S. Romero,
abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak
By 07/22/2009

PHUKET, Thailand - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is due to sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) with the ASEAN on Wednesday, a move which signals America’s intentions to place the 10-member regional bloc well within its political radar after a virtual absence under the Bush administration.

“It’s a reflection of the shift of their mindset,” ASEAN Secretary General Dr. Surin Pitsuwan said. “The US was absent or disengaged from the region for the last few years and is now coming towards ASEAN rather proactively to engage with the ASEAN process.”

Aside from its accession to the TAC, a treaty which emphasizes the principles of sovereignty and non-interference, Clinton will also participate in the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the region's major venue for talks on international security.

Clinton’s presence in the ARF reinforces the new US priority considering that her predecessor Condoleeza Rice skipped the ARF in 2006 amid America’s strong stand against the detention of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi by the ruling military regime in Myanmar.

“The US presence gives the impression of continuing involvement with the ASEAN,” Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Edgardo Malaya told Abs-cbnnews.com/Newsbreak.

Prior to this, US also reached out to Laos and Cambodia after it removed the these two ASEAN member from its trade blacklist.

This would allow US firms to seek loans from the US government to operate in Laos and Cambodia following President Barack Obama’s announcement in June that the two countries have made a turnaround against communism.

Clinton would also have a separate sit-down for the first time with officials from Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand on July 23 to thresh out possible common approaches to the issues of regional crimes and environmental management, including water resources.

Some political observers believe that America’s efforts to firm up its ties with ASEAN serves as a strategic move to counter China’s growing influence in the region. China has allotted US$10 billion to develop transportation links in ASEAN, apart from its plans to provide a $15 billion commercial credit for the next 3-5 years.

Surin said, however, that it remains to be seen how US will move forward with its engagement with the ASEAN after acceding to the TAC.

“We hope it will be a change we can believe in," he said. "They will sign the TAC, but what is after that?”