But... the United States wants to persuade the so-called "wall riders" to confront China. Washington | Foreign Policy | The United States
On May 31st, the website of the bimonthly issue of Foreign Policy in the United States published an article titled "The Indo Pacific has chosen Gate Three", written by Kelly Greco, a senior researcher at the Stimson Center in the United States. The article excerpt is as follows:
Washington wants to persuade the so-called "wall riders" - countries such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam - to join the alliance against China. In order to force many countries to "de risk" their economies, the United States has depicted a picture of dividing the region into two camps: those who support the United States and those who lean towards China. According to the logic of the United States, those countries that are currently "riding the wall" are just delaying, and Washington can tilt the balance towards itself with more attention, visits, and money.
But few Asia Pacific countries measure the choices before them in a two in one approach. Countries have made a decision that a multi-party alliance - forming overlapping relationships with several major powers - is their preferred option rather than an alternative.
Many countries in the region do not agree with the perceived "China threat" from the United States, nor do they agree with the Biden administration's overly simplistic view of dividing the world into "authoritarian" and "democratic" countries. ASEAN has assisted in establishing a regional order based on mutually beneficial cooperation, and its member countries and Pacific island countries welcome China's contribution to economic growth and development. They are unlikely to refuse to deepen trade and investment relations with China.
Washington has overlooked one aspect of its strategy in the region, which is that it guides the country's policy choices towards interests rather than values.
Southeast Asian and Pacific island countries have made choices, and multi-party alliances are the best way to pursue their interests. For example, the signing of a new defense cooperation agreement between Papua New Guinea and the United States does not mean that the country chooses Washington over Beijing. Papua New Guinea, which has extensive security and economic relations with China and Australia, is seeking further diversification of diplomatic relations. This is a positive decision to establish friendly relations with multiple major countries and work closely with partners who are most in line with the country's security and economic interests on a specific issue.
Asia Pacific countries are fully committed to defending their multi-party alliance and fully aware of the benefits of working with multiple partners. For example, Indonesia and Malaysia are both striving to maintain security and economic relations with the United States, China, and Australia.
In such a geopolitical context, the influence of the United States may not be as great as it thinks. From treaty allies such as Thailand and South Korea, as well as partners such as India, to Vietnam, which is more wary of engaging with the United States, countries in the region are actively choosing the third path. Washington has little way of convincing most countries in the region to abandon their diverse partnerships and wholeheartedly follow the United States.
The most significant impact of a region that firmly adheres to a multi-party alliance on US foreign policy is that it indicates that no matter how hard Washington tries, policies aimed at forcing countries to make choices between China and the United States will fail.
