Kamala Harris to reaffirm her commitment to Southeast Asia, will speak with the Thai Prime Minister
US Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to reiterate Washington’s commitment to Southeast Asia during her visit to Thailand and the Philippines, a senior administration official told reporters at a background briefing earlier this week.
The vice president is scheduled to deliver a speech at the APEC executive summit on Friday, where she will outline the White House’s economic agenda for the region.
“The central message of her remarks will be that the United States has an enduring economic commitment to the Indo-Pacific and that there is no better partner for the economies and companies of the Indo-Pacific than the United States,” he said.
On Saturday, Harris will meet with Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and discuss issues such as the climate crisis, the clean energy transition, as well as Myanmar.
– Lee Ying Shan
China’s Xi Jinping and Japan’s Fumio Kishida will hold their first face-to-face talks
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech at the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee in Beijing, the capital of China. The session was held in Beijing from 8 to 11 November.
Yu Peng | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet on the sidelines of the APEC summit.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the two will exchange views on Sino-Japanese relations, as well as international and regional issues of mutual interest.
“China and Japan are close neighbors and important countries in the region… Both sides should respond to the trend of the times, remain committed to peace and friendship, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, manage differences well, and work together to to build Sino-Japanese relations that meet the call of the new era,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Wednesday.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also expects to meet Xi on the sidelines of the forum, Reuters reported, citing a government spokesman.
– Lee Ying Shan
Saudi-Thai cooperation on food and energy is a “good sign”, says APEC executive
Saudi Arabia’s commitment to energy investment in Thailand is a “good sign” for diplomatic relations between the two countries, APEC Executive Director Kasemsit Pathomsak told CNBC’s Sri Yegarajah.
In May, state-backed Aramco signed a memorandum of understanding with Thailand’s national oil company in efforts to boost energy cooperation with Thailand and strengthen its presence in the region. In the same month, Saudi Arabia’s investment fund said it would use Thailand as a center for investment in Southeast Asia.
“It’s a good sign … certainly to reconnect at a time when both economies are big enough and there are a lot of synergies here,” Patomsak said, pointing to food and energy as areas of potential cooperation.
The deals suggest a further thaw in relations after the 30-year “blue diamond affair”, which involved the theft of Saudi jewels and the death of Saudi diplomats in Thailand. In January, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha became the first Thai head of government to visit the kingdom since the dispute.
– Lee Ying Shan
Hun Sen of Cambodia is positive for Covid, will not attend APEC
Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia
Ahn Young-Joon | AFP | Getty Images
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen tested positive for Covid earlier this week and will not be attending the APEC summit in Bangkok.
The Cambodian leader announced on Tuesday that he had tested positive for Covid and had to cancel his meetings at the G20 summit in Indonesia to return home early.
– Lee Ying Shan
Biden to miss summit; Vice President Kamala Harris will represent the United States
US Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Lieutenant Doug Emhoff (L) depart Joint Base Andrews en route to Thailand for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on November 16, 2022.
Haiyun Jiang | AFP | Getty Images
US President Joe Biden will not attend the APEC leaders’ meeting in Bangkok because he will be attending his niece’s wedding. Instead, Vice President Kamala Harris will represent the United States
“The vice president will engage with Thai leaders and civil society representatives to reaffirm and strengthen the US-Thai alliance and discuss our cooperation on a range of issues,” White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre said in an October statement. .
Earlier this week, Biden attended the Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, where leaders of major economies discussed Russia’s war in Ukraine, the cost-of-living crisis, supply chain disruptions, and energy and food security.
– Lee Ying Shan
