May 19, 2022
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, today sent a letter to President Biden requesting he pursue a more robust economic and trade agenda in the Indo-Pacific ahead of his visit to Asia.
“We write to urge you to pursue a more robust economic and trade agenda in the Indo-Pacific,” the senators wrote. “As you head to the region, your engagements provide a key opportunity to show the entire region that the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy prioritizes economic and commercial engagement. Tightening our linkages with growing Indo-Pacific economies is crucial to growth at home, including our supply chain resiliency, prosperity in the region, and the advancement of shared interests.”
“The United States – led by our entrepreneurial private sector – is deeply engaged in Indo-Pacific economies already,” the senators continued. “For instance, the combined nations of ASEAN constitute together the 4th largest market for U.S. exports, supporting 625,000 jobs, and U.S. companies’ investment position in ASEAN is $338 billion. U.S. companies create jobs both in the Indo-Pacific and here at home, engage in important assistance efforts, advance corporate social responsibility programs, and much more.”
“U.S. economic engagement is sometimes underappreciated, particularly given China’s efforts to portray itself as the Indo-Pacific’s main and sometimes exclusive economic partner,” the senators continued. “China’s predatory investment in the region is indeed extremely concerning.”
“We respectfully suggest the coming year offers numerous opportunities to demonstrate your plans for real and concrete economic engagement in the Indo-Pacific,” the senators concluded. “In that spirit, we offer the following recommendations and request a consultation between our offices and the executive branch on the extent to which the administration is developing plans to implement these steps.”
Full text of the letter can be found here and below:
Dear Mr. President:
We write to urge you to pursue a more robust economic and trade agenda in the Indo-Pacific. As you head to the region, your engagements provide a key opportunity to show the entire region that the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy prioritizes economic and commercial engagement. Tightening our linkages with growing Indo-Pacific economies is crucial to growth at home, including our supply chain resiliency, prosperity in the region, and the advancement of shared interests.
The United States – led by our entrepreneurial private sector – is deeply engaged in Indo-Pacific economies already. For instance, the combined nations of ASEAN constitute together the 4th largest market for U.S. exports, supporting 625,000 jobs, and U.S. companies’ investment position in ASEAN is $338 billion. U.S. companies create jobs both in the Indo-Pacific and here at home, engage in important assistance efforts, advance corporate social responsibility programs, and much more.
U.S. economic engagement is sometimes underappreciated, particularly given China’s efforts to portray itself as the Indo-Pacific’s main and sometimes exclusive economic partner. China’s predatory investment in the region is indeed extremely concerning. However, it’s important to remember that Japan, the United States, and the European Union still invest far more in ASEAN than China does. And that the United States has $832 million in two-way trade with Pacific Island countries, on top of Australia and New Zealand’s close ties.
Yet, U.S. administrations of both parties could do much better in pursuing a consistent and robust Indo-Pacific agenda on trade and economic issues. For example, the administration must not decline to pursue additional market access within the Indo-Pacific…
Read More: Risch, Cantwell Encourage POTUS to Pursue Stronger Indo-Pacific Strategy
