US pivot to Asia to help stabilize region

From the Manila  Standard Today (Jan 19): US pivot to Asia to help stabilize region

A United States lawmaker on Friday said the US presence in the Asia-Pacific region would help “stabilize’ security in the region amid the ongoing territorial dispute in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea). US Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the U.S House Committee on Foreign Relations, made the assurance in a meeting with Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario when the country’s top envoy visited Washington recently. “Representative Royce reiterated his commitment to a strong alliance between the Philippines and the United States,” a statement from the Foreign Affairs Department said.

In recent months, countries belonging to the Association of South East Nations have been rocked by diplomatic spats, mainly because of what they claimed as China’s increasingly aggressive stance in the South China Sea. Royce also downplayed fears that the US budget reduction may impact on its diplomatic relations with Asia, particularly in the areas of security and military alliances.
He said that with the increasing number of Filipino-American lawmakers in the US, Royce said that he does not see that budget reduction would affect Washington’s relations with Manila.

“I don’t believe any sequestration or budget reduction would have any marked impact on US engagement in Asia, particularly in bolstering security and military alliances. Asia represents half of the global economy. We need to keep the peace and keep the shipping lines open. The supremacy of international law must be respected,” Royce said.

Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr., who was also at the meeting, said that del Rosario and Royce “renewed their commitment to promoting the historic and vital relationship between the two countries.” Del Rosario and Cuisia expressed their gratitude to the congressman for his support for the Save Our Industries Act (SAVE Act), a trade initiative in the US Congress which is aimed at promoting Philippine apparel and US textile industries. Royce said “we have to keep pushing it [the SAVE Act].”

“The US pivot to Asia should lean towards the Philippines, the oldest and one of the closest allies of the US in the region. The SAVE Act is (a) tangible evidence in trade policy of this pivot,” he added. Recognizing the importance of the alliance in the ambit of the US Congress, Royce assured del Rosario that he will help reinvigorate the Philippine-US Friendship Caucus. The Caucus is a bipartisan network of US congressmen which work for a robust bilateral partnership for democracy and regional security and recognizes the dynamic presence of Filipino Americans in the United States.

Royce is a long-time proponent of closer defense cooperation between the Philippines and the US, and has pushed for bilateral efforts against terrorism. He is also a staunch supporter of the rules-based approach to the West Philippine Sea issue and the peaceful resolution of disputes within the framework of international law.

China and the Philippines are embroiled in a simmering territorial dispute over the resource-rich chain of islands in the West Philippine Sea. China claims virtually the entire sea, while parts of it are being claimed in parts by the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam. The US presence in the region, however, was an unwelcome sight for China who had proposed bilateral talks to resolve the dispute. The United States, however, has backed the Philippine proposal of subjecting the issue in multilateral talks that would include parties with strategic interests to the peace and stability in the region.

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/01/19/us-pivot-to-asia-to-help-stabilize-region/