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News Desk: Washington \u2013 U.S. 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.<\/p>\nNews Desk: Washington \u2013 U.S. 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cSecretary Austin\u2019s visit will demonstrate the importance the Biden-Harris Administration places on Southeast Asia and on ASEAN as an essential part of the Indo-Pacific\u2019s architecture,\u201d Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi said on Tuesday that Austin\u2019s trip would start on July 23.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis 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,\u201d the embassy said in a Facebook post.<\/p>\n
The United States under President Joe Biden is looking to reinforce the need for a U.S. role in a region where China has sizeable influence as the dominant trade partner, but testy relationships as a result of its military activities in the South China Sea.<\/p>\n
Austin has been 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.<\/p>\n
Source: Japan Times<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
News Desk: Washington \u2013 U.S. 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. \u201cSecretary Austin\u2019s visit will demonstrate the importance the Biden-Harris Administration places on Southeast Asia and on ASEAN […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":70592,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2,14],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n