US President Joe Biden’s Asia trip unlikely to include attendance at ASEAN summits

US President Joe Biden is not expected to participate in summits alongside Southeast Asian leaders scheduled to take place in Jakarta next month, Reuters reported citing sources.

This potential absence raises concerns about the extent of the US commitment to a region crucial in its endeavours to counterbalance China's growing influence.

Biden is scheduled to participate in a G20 summit in India on September 9-10 and has mentioned his intention to visit Vietnam, a vital emerging partner in Southeast Asia, to enhance relations.

However, his attendance at the September 4-7 summits of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which comprises ten nations, remains uncertain.

Reuters further reported Biden is not anticipated to travel to Indonesia. Furthermore, a Washington-based ambassador representing an ASEAN member revealed that Indonesia was informed on Monday about Biden's decision to not attend.

Asked if it was correct that Biden would not be going to Indonesia, a senior White House official told Reuters on Tuesday: "We're still working on it ... we'll probably have more to say about it soon."

White House spokespersons did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sources told Reuters that Biden's schedule for Asia is not official until it has been announced and could change.

Several ASEAN diplomats said it would be a significant disappointment if Biden did not go to Jakarta, given the public emphasis his administration puts on the importance of ties with the region.

A senior diplomat pointed out that Indonesia intentionally rescheduled the ASEAN summits, typically held in November, to September, aiming to accommodate Biden's attendance and his subsequent participation in the G20.

Insiders indicated that Biden was projected to delegate Vice President Kamala Harris to represent him. Harris, who is the first Asian American vice president, has previously engaged in diplomatic efforts within the region.

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Biden previously generated disappointment within the area by canceling a trip to Papua New Guinea in May, which would have marked the first visit by a sitting US president, along with a subsequent scheduled visit to Australia. These cancellations were due to his efforts to negotiate a resolution to the US debt ceiling crisis with lawmakers.

During an address at an event connected to ASEAN in Washington on Tuesday, Jonathan Finer, the deputy national security adviser to Biden, commended the significance of the US-ASEAN relationship and emphasized that the administration's strategy for the Indo-Pacific region is fundamentally centered around "ASEAN centrality."

"It will be viewed as another letdown by the region," said Murray Hiebert, a senior associate with the Southeast Asia program at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"Southeast Asia has been impressed that Washington under Biden has stepped up engagement with the region," Hiebert said, adding, "For him to skip the summit when he will already be nearby attending a summit in India, and likely making an official visit to Vietnam, will prompt many in the region to wonder whether the US is again slipping back to its episodic and half-hearted engagement with the region."

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Ted Osius, a former US ambassador to Vietnam who heads the US-ASEAN Business Council, said there would likely be some disappointment if Biden was unable to go to Jakarta, although he stressed the "dramatic" increase in U.S. government-to-government engagement with ASEAN under Biden, a Democrat.

ASEAN member nations expressed dissatisfaction when Donald Trump, Biden's Republican predecessor, opted to not participate in regional summits for three consecutive years. This was viewed by policy experts as contributing to China's efforts to expand its influence in the area.

Barack Obama, who preceded Trump, attended all U.S.-ASEAN and East Asia summits from 2011, except for 2013 when he had to cancel due to a government shutdown occurring domestically.

(With inputs from Reuters)