ASEAN Nations and the 2024 U.S. Presidential Elections
Virtual Briefing Series
Wednesday, May 22, 2024 | 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM ET
The ASEAN countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) all have anxious eyes on the tense relationship between the U.S. and China, and especially the coming U.S. elections. Navigating between the two nations’ influence, policymakers in these countries widely accept that whoever wins the 2024 U.S. election will greatly impact the next few years of the Association. ASEAN is a key partner of the United States in its strategy toward China, but the ASEAN grouping itself is extremely diverse with different sets of interests. The Biden Administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy, while not perfect, has brought fresh cooperation with nations like Vietnam and the Philippines, and a subtle-yet-tangible effort against Chinese dominance in the region. The coming election could have a profound impact on the strengthening of cooperation and development of further economic ties, which may affect Beijing and Washington’s continuing push for influence over the Indo-Pacific region.
Join us on Wednesday, May 22nd from 1 PM to 2 PM ET as we tackle these possibilities and more with Ambassador Ted Osius, former U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam and President/CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council, and Dr. Pek Koon Heng, Assistant Professor Emerita and former director of the ASEAN Studies Initiative at American University’s School of International Service, for an engaging and important discussion on a key partner to Washington in the Indo-Pacific region.
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SPEAKERS:
Ambasasdor Ted Osius
Former ambassador Ted Osius is President & CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. Founded in 1984, the Council represents 175 of the largest American businesses in Southeast Asia through its headquarters in Washington, DC, and its seven regional offices.
A diplomat for thirty years, Ambassador Osius served from 2014 to 2017 as U.S. ambassador to Vietnam. Leading a team of 900, Ambassador Osius devised and implemented strategies to deepen economic, security and cultural ties between the two countries. In October 2021, Osius published his most recent book, Nothing Is Impossible: America’s Reconciliation with Vietnam, with a Foreword by former Secretary of State John Kerry, covering the two countries’ 25-year journey from adversaries to friends and partners.
After his departure from government, Osius joined Google Asia-Pacific as Vice President for Government Affairs and Public Policy, covering 19 Asian nations from Google’s Singapore headquarters. Earlier, he was a senior advisor at the Albright-Stonebridge Group and the first Vice President of Fulbright University Vietnam. Osius was associate professor at the National War College and Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
As a diplomat, Osius served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Political Minister-Counselor in New Delhi, India. Osius also served as deputy director of the Office of Korean Affairs at the State Department, regional environment officer for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and senior advisor on Asia and trade to Vice President Al Gore. He also served in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Manila, and at the United Nations.
Ambassador Osius has authored numerous articles on Foreign Service tradecraft and U.S.-Asia policy. He wrote The U.S.-Japan Security Alliance: Why It Matters and How To Strengthen It (CSIS/Praeger 2002) as a fellow at the Japan Institute for International Affairs (日本国際問題研究所). While at CSIS, he published “Global Swing States: Deepening Partnerships with India and Indonesia” (Asia Policy, January 2014), Enhancing India-ASEAN Connectivity and A US-Indonesia Partnership for 2020.
Ambassador Osius earned a Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, a Master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, and an Honorary Doctorate from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education. He was the first U.S. ambassador to receive the Order of Friendship from the President of Vietnam. He serves on the Asia Foundation’s Board of Trustees and is a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy.
Dr. Pek Koon Heng
Dr. Pek Koon Heng is Assistant Professor Emerita and former director of the ASEAN Studies Initiative at American University’s School of International Service from 2009-2022. A specialist in the international relations, regional integration, international political economy, comparative politics and human rights in Southeast Asia, she ran American University’s graduate summer program in Malaysia and Indonesia from 2001-2019. She was also a contract coordinator at the State Department Foreign Service Institute’s Southeast Asia Area Studies program from 2002-2023. She has previously taught at Auckland University in New Zealand, Hull University in England, the National University of Malaysia, and Temple University Japan. She has also been a Visiting Professor at Peking University, and a Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, and the Institute of Security and International Studies, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. Her publications include “Malaysia and the United States: A Maturing Partnership,” Weiss, M., ed., Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Malaysia, 2015, and “The ‘ASEAN Way’ and Regional Security Cooperation in the South China Sea,” European University Institute, EUI Working Paper, 2014. Pek Koon earned her PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and her BA and MA from Auckland University, New Zealand.
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