Secretary Blinken’s Participation in the 12th ASEAN-U.S. Summit

The following is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken participated in the 12th ASEAN-U.S. Summit held in Vientiane, Laos. The Secretary highlighted how the U.S.-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership continues to deliver concrete benefits for our combined one billion people. The Secretary reiterated the United States' enduring economic cooperation with ASEAN, which includes our status as ASEAN's number one source of Foreign Direct Investment. He also highlighted our enhanced engagements in energy, the digital economy, cybersecurity, transportation, science and technology, health, and environment and climate.

The Secretary also addressed pressing geopolitical issues including provocative PRC actions in the South China Sea, East China Sea, and the Taiwan Strait; Russia's ongoing aggression against Ukraine; the DPRK's destabilizing actions; the conflict in Burma; and regional tensions in the Middle East. Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the United States' commitment to ASEAN centrality and to a rules-based international order.