In Singapore, Kamala Harris wants to reassure the Asian allies of the United States

Vice President Kamala Harris and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at a joint press conference in Singapore on August 23, 2021 © Evelyn Hockstein, Reuters

Text by: Gabrielle Maréchaux Follow

7 mins

This is Kamala Harris' second overseas trip.

In a tour of Southeast Asia, the US Vice President pledged a " 

lasting commitment

 " from the United States in the region during a press conference in Singapore with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

While the American debacle in Afghanistan arouses apprehension among its partners, Kamala Harris has particularly focused on health and climate issues. 

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From our correspondent in South-East Asia,

When Kamala Harris lists her topics of conversation with Prime Minister Lee, it is neither Afghanistan, nor

China's growing influence in the region

-

which worries the United States

 - that she brings up.

The conversation we had today was motivated in various ways by what we can see as a new era beginning

: a new era defined by the threats of the pandemic, the climate crisis, cybersecurity,

 " summed up the Vice-President.

Upon arriving in Singapore, Kamala Harris set foot on hospitable, but also highly strategic, land.

If Singapore is the first destination for American investments in Southeast Asia, the city-state is not an official ally of the United States: Washington can enjoy the support of the Philippines and Thailand for this in the region. .

Well aware of its extremely strategic position in the most heavily traveled strait in the world and of its small size, Singapore tries to preciously conserve as much autonomy and freedom of maneuver as possible, according to Collin Koh, researcher at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies: “ 

Lining up behind any major country is not going to serve Singapore's international interests.

 "

Emphasis on other cooperation than with China

To serve, despite this reality, the interests of the United States, Kamala Harris did not therefore only speak of a " 

new era

 ": she chose a new tone and a new ground, far from the rhetoric of Donald Trump, who had met Kim Jong-un in the city-state in 2018.

“ 

The United States' approach to Southeast Asia has been increasingly criticized in recent years

,” recalls Collin Koh.

The main basis for these criticisms was that

the United States seemed to consider that Southeast Asia's only interest was to be close to China. These criticisms also pointed to the absence of a comprehensive strategy for Southeast Asia, with only scattered actions and inconsistent policies.

 "

“ 

Kamala Harris seems to want to silence these criticisms, by no longer talking so much about China, security or defense, but by putting forward softer forms of cooperation, such as cooperation in times of pandemic.

This area is also strategic, because for the moment China seems to have a head start in the matter in South-East Asia

 ”, continues the researcher.

Kamala Harris and Prime Minister Lee thus congratulated themselves on the joint efforts for the

sequencing of the genome of the variants of Covid-19

.

But the American vice-president also mentioned a negative repercussion of the pandemic in Southeast Asia for the United States: a difficult supply for the industry.

“ 

Take, for example, 

semiconductor chips

.

They power everything

: phones, computers, cars… And if they are not produced in sufficient numbers on a global scale, our auto industry in the United States will be severely impacted,

 ”she listed.

To overcome this problem, it is precisely in Singapore that the American company GlobalFoundries wants to set up a new factory.

In the midst of the debacle in Afghanistan, Washington ensures it is working for peace in Asia

In her speech, Kamala Harris tried to highlight the issues of economic partnership, the common fight against climate change.

But defense issues have not failed to resurface through questions asked by local journalists.

Even as the American troops continue their departure from Afghanistan

, the vice president assured that the United States wants to act for security and peace in South Asia.

Asked by journalists

about Washington's loss of credibility

, Kamala Harris then defended herself by evoking the complexity of the situation and the American priorities in the Afghan conflict.

 To read also: Afghanistan: the lightning conquest of the Taliban tarnishes the image of the United States

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