RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — President Barack Obama and leaders of Southeast Asian nations discussed regional security issues Tuesday before closing a summit called to show solidarity and U.S. seriousness about staying engaged in a region where a rising China has rattled American allies.
Obama and leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations were to spend the session trading their views on China’s territorial claims to disputed water of the South China Sea, moves that have sounded international alarms and heightened tensions with some association members.
Counterterrorism, a growing concern in the Asia-Pacific region, was also on the agenda.
The U.S. maintains that maritime disputes should be resolved peacefully according to international law, a stance Obama emphasized Monday in welcoming leaders of ASEAN’s 10-nation bloc: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.
“Here at this summit, we can advance our shared vision of a regional order where international rules and norms, including freedom of navigation, are upheld and where disputes are resolved through peaceful, legal means,” Obama said, opening the first ASEAN-only summit held in the U.S. The symbolism of the meeting is likely to be more significant than any outcome.