US Defense secretary to visit Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam | Global News

US Defense secretary to visit Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam

/ 11:36 AM July 20, 2021

lloyd austin

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin testifies on the defense department’s budget request during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 17, 2021. REUTERS FILE PHOTO

WASHINGTON — US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will visit Southeast Asia later this month, the Pentagon said, a trip that will include stops in the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, according to the U.S. embassy in Hanoi.

“Secretary Austin’s visit will demonstrate the importance the Biden-Harris Administration places on Southeast Asia and on Asean as an essential part of the Indo-Pacific’s architecture,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc.

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The U.S. embassy in Hanoi said on Tuesday that Austin’s trip would start on July 23.

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“This trip will underscore the enduring U.S. commitment to the region, and our interest in upholding the rules-based international order in the region and promoting Asean centrality,” the embassy said in a Facebook post.

The United States under President Joe Biden is looking to reinforce the need for a U.S. role in a region where China has sizable influence as the dominant trade partner, but testy relationships as a result of its military activities in the South China Sea.

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Austin has been able to preserve decades-old military ties with the Philippines, a defense treaty partner, after repeated threats to downgrade the alliance by its largely pro-China President Rodrigo Duterte, whose term ends next year.

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TAGS: Asia, Defense, Global Nation, Lloyd Austin, Philippines, US, Vietnam

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