USA TODAY: The White House looked to this long-planned trip as crucial to the Obama administration’s so-called “Asia pivot,” a proposed increased focus on the region because of its growing economic importance and the rise of China…
While [President] Obama has build up some good will in the region by merely underscoring the need for American policy to shift to Asia, canceling the entire trip could raise new questions about whether the U.S. is truly committed to a sustained focus on the region.
Even before the U.N. address, Asian diplomats were raising concerns that U.S. budget cuts and Secretary of State John Kerry’s increased focus on Syria and reviving Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are undercutting Obama’s first term push for a rebalance to Asia, said Michael Green, who served as an Asia adviser in the George W. Bush administration… (more)
