5/19/14 6:33 PMAsia Unbound » Wenchi Yu: President Obama’s Underreported Asia Strategy

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U.S. president Barack Obama high fives a member ofthe audience as he leaves after the Young SoutheastAsian Leadership Intiative (YSEALI) Town Hall insidethe University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur on April 27,2014. (Samsul Said/Courtesy Reuters)

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Wenchi Yu: President Obama’sUnderreported Asia Strategyby Guest Blogger for Elizabeth C. Economy May 2, 2014

Wenchi Yu is an Asia Society fellow, a Project 2049

Institute fellow, and a former U.S. Department of State

official. She is the managing partner of the Banyan

Advisory Group LLC, which focuses on social investment

in Asia. Follow her on Twitter: @WenchiY.

President Barack Obama just returned from Asia after an

eight-day, four-country visit to the region. International

media coverage carefully examined the Obama

administration’s “pivot,” or “rebalancing,” to Asia

through trade, military, and other security issues and the

reaction of China to the president’s visit. But given the

United States’ complex diplomatic relations with the region, it is the president’s people-to-people

diplomacy in Southeast Asia that is most likely to result in long-term goodwill from the region.

Despite growing trade relations between the United States and Southeast Asia, diplomatic relations are

historically weak. A critical part of the Obama administration’s Asia policy is increasing engagement in

5/19/14 6:33 PMAsia Unbound » Wenchi Yu: President Obama’s Underreported Asia Strategy

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Southeast Asia—a region with diverse ethnicities, languages, and cultures, as well as emerging economies,

moderate Muslim-majority countries, and a political bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

(ASEAN), with increasing influence in regional matters. While maintaining strong relationships with allies

like Japan, Korea, and Australia remains a priority, Washington has the most to gain by investing time

and resources in its partners in Southeast Asia.

In this vein, a core U.S. strategy has been and should be people-to-people diplomacy using non-security

issues such as innovation, technology, entrepreneurship, gender equality, youth, and development as tools

for engagement. In Southeast Asia, people-to-people diplomacy has manifested itself in strategic

initiatives such as the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, the

annual U.S.-ASEAN Business Summit, the Lower Mekong Initiative, and entrepreneurship and women-

focused programs. The U.S. State Department underwent organizational changes to embed a senior

(deputy assistant secretary) position in the regional bureau to carry out public diplomacy programs.

Embassies and ambassadors are encouraged to use social media—popular in the region—to reach out to

new and young audiences. For example, America’s popular ambassador to Thailand, Kristie Kenney, uses

Twitter extensively to communicate with her nearly fifty-thousand followers. In Jakarta, the

@america cultural center uses technology to engage young Indonesians with American culture and

values. Most of these people-to-people efforts are welcomed by this region’s governments and societies

because they speak directly to citizens, bring new opportunities, and bridge differences. To the United

States, investing in and influencing open-minded, innovative, and moderate emerging leaders is an

important long-term strategy. The goal is simple—win the hearts and minds of the people and future

leaders.

This strategy is working on the ground and American diplomats are doing it more. During Obama’s visit to

Malaysia—the first American presidential visit in forty-eight years—he held a town hall event with five

hundred Malaysian university students. He also held a business signing ceremony for major U.S.-Malaysia

commercial deals and spoke with young entrepreneurs from Southeast Asia to discuss challenges

facing their societies. When young social entrepreneurs, with U.S. support, are given the opportunity to

present their own solutions to community problems, they are much more likely to develop a positive

impression of the United States. Although these efforts do not replace important security and military

cooperation, Obama’s message was clear—people-to-people engagement is an important part of U.S.

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policy in the region.

Still, winning the hearts and minds of the people is not just about unquestioning support. As one young

Malaysian woman remarked, “America used to stand for freedom of speech and democracy, pushing for

more civil society space.” But Obama’s historic visit to Kuala Lumpur—seen as a boost for Malaysia’s

highly unpopular prime minister Najib Razak—was rather confusing to her. “Why would America stand by

a leader who has so many issues at home? Is America compromising?” United States should not be afraid

of speaking out when things are wrong—a core value of the United States.

Those who question whether Obama is serious about his Asia policy need to look beyond traditional

political and security issues. As former secretary of state Hillary Clinton has written, “engagement must go

far beyond government-to-government interactions.” Though not as controversial or provocative as the

issues favored by the media, sustained, strategic investments in Southeast Asia’s business, society, and

people are much more likely to yield long-term goodwill toward the United States. To increase American

influence in Asia, a winning strategy must begin with the people.

CFR seeks to foster civil and informed discussion of foreign policy issues. Opinions expressed on CFR blogs are solely those of theauthor or commenter, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions. All comments must abide by CFR's guidelines and will bemoderated prior to posting.

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