On Thursday, Mr Biden begins a two-day summit with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes 10 countries, in Washington, with a dinner for the leaders at the White House before talks at the department status Friday.
His administration hopes these efforts will show countries that Washington remains focused on the Indo-Pacific region and the long-term challenge of China, which it sees as its main competitor, despite the war in Ukraine.
In November alone, China pledged $1.5 billion in development assistance to ASEAN countries over three years to fight COVID and fuel economic recovery.
“We need to step up our game in Southeast Asia,” a senior US administration official told reporters. “We are not asking countries to make a choice between the United States and China. However, we would like to make it clear that the United States is looking for a stronger relationship.”
The new financial commitment includes a $40 million investment in infrastructure to help decarbonize the region’s electricity supply and $60 million in maritime security, as well as some $15 million in health funding. to help early detection of COVID-19 and other respiratory pandemics, an official said. Additional funds will help countries develop laws on the digital economy and artificial intelligence.
The US Coast Guard will also deploy a vessel to the region to help local fleets counter what Washington and regional countries have described as China’s illegal fishing.
Yet these commitments pale in comparison to China’s deep ties and influence in the region.
Mr Biden is working on other initiatives involving the region, including an infrastructure investment project called Build Back Better World and an Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). But none of these initiatives have yet been finalized and should figure prominently in the announcements made at this meeting.
The summit marks the first time ASEAN leaders have met as a group at the White House and their first meeting hosted by a US president since 2016.
Up to eight ASEAN leaders are expected. Myanmar’s leader was ousted following a coup last year and the Philippines is in transition after an election, although Biden spoke to the country’s president-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Wednesday.
ASEAN countries also share concerns about China and are generally keen to strengthen their ties with Washington.
China’s assertion of sovereignty over large swathes of the South China Sea has pitted it against ASEAN members Vietnam and the Philippines, while Brunei and Malaysia also claim parts.
But countries in the region have also been frustrated by a delay in the United States detailing plans for economic engagement since former President Donald Trump quit a regional trade pact in 2017.
The IPEF is expected to be launched during Biden’s trip to Japan and South Korea next week. But analysts and diplomats say only two of ASEAN’s 10 countries – Singapore and the Philippines – are expected to be among the first group of countries to engage in negotiations under the IPEF, which does not currently offer the expanded market access that Asian countries seek, given Biden’s concern for American jobs.
Analysts say while ASEAN countries share US concerns about China, they remain cautious about taking a tougher stance with Washington, given their predominant economic ties to Beijing and the incentives economic limitations of the United States.
An adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, in office since 1985 but making his first visit to the White House, told Reuters that Biden should spend more time with leaders if he is serious about strengthening ties with the region.
The adviser, Kao Kim Hourn, said Cambodia, which has close economic ties with China, will “not choose sides” between Washington and Beijing despite increasing US investment in his country.