Biden looks to nudge ASEAN leaders to speak out on Russia

Leaders were scheduled to hold formal talks at the State Department on Friday

ITDC INDIA EPRESS/ ITDC NEWS President Joe Biden is looking to nudge southeast Asian leaders to be more outspoken about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but the issue continues to be a delicate one for many members of the region's 10-country alliance with deep ties to Moscow.

Biden welcomed leaders from Association of Southeast Asian Nations to White House on Thursday night for an intimate dinner to kick off the two-day summit, the first meeting of the group to be held in Washington in its 45-year history.

The White House is also trying to demonstrate that it is stepping up in the Pacific even as the administration has been focused on the war in Ukraine. It announced that the United States would commit to more than USD 150 million in new projects to bolster Southeast Asia's climate, maritime and public health infrastructure.

But Biden knows that finding consensus with ASEAN members on the Russian invasion could prove to be difficult.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday said Ukraine would be on the agenda for the leaders' talks, but she couldn't make a prediction on whether the group would touch on the Russian invasion in the summit's communique.

I will say that a number of the ASEAN participants have been important partners in calling out the aggressive action of Russia, she said, and in participating and in supporting sanctions and, certainly, abiding by them.

Some ASEAN members -- Vietnam, Myanmar, and Laos for years have depended on Russia for military hardware. With the exception of Singapore -- the only member of the 10-member group to impose direct sanctions against Moscow -- the alliance has avoided criticising President Vladimir Putin or Russia's prosecution of the war.

Indonesia has been guarded in its public comments on invasion and, as has the Philippines, made clear it won't impose sanctions against Russia. Thailand joined a United Nations vote against the invasion of Ukraine, but has maintained a position of neutrality in the war.

Leaders were scheduled to hold formal talks at the State Department on Friday, and Biden was scheduled to address the group.

The ASEAN nations include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The top leaders from ASEAN member Myanmar were barred from attending, while outgoing Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte dispatched Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr to represent his government.