US Secretary of Defense signals resolve and return of values to Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy

28 July 2021

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III gave a major speech at Singapore’s Fullerton Hotel last night as he embarked on a tour of Southeast Asia, marking the first visit to the region by a cabinet official from the Biden administration. Secretary Austin is headed to Vietnam and the Philippines next.

The lecture, titled “The Imperative of Partnership”, sent an important signal of the US’ commitment at a time of increasing doubt regarding American engagement in the region as the Biden administration withdraws from Afghanistan, responds to the global Covid pandemic, and struggles to get its own house in order and reboot the economy following a contentious presidential transition. Secretary Austin used the word “committed” or “commitment” a total of ten times and mentioned “partnerships” 21 times, signalling a stark departure from the era of America First under Donald Trump.

Striking a delicate balance

As with many policy speeches delivered in Singapore, known for its ambiguous foreign policy navigating US-China competition, Secretary Austin’s remarks presented something of a Rorschach Test for listeners. In my discussions following the speech, interestingly, Southeast Asians tended to find more to like in the speech than American counterparts, who wanted more clarity on concepts like integrated deterrence.

If the primary message was meant to reassure Southeast Asian states that the Biden administration would remain engaged in the region, then it was largely successful. Observers also remarked on Austin’s palpable equanimity, poise and measured restraint. He spoke in evenhanded and calm tones, reassuring his audience that Washington was still a credible partner and friend in the long run. Nevertheless, regional states are still looking for signs of American economic engagement since Trump’s withdrawal from the multilateral Trans-Pacific Partnership, and the secretary’s remarks provided no clues in that regard.

Austin reiterated President Biden’s commitment to providing 500 million vaccine doses worldwide in the next year, many of them bound for the region. Without naming China, which has sold nearly 200 million vaccines to Southeast Asia, he noted that the United States provides these vaccines free and with “no strings attached”, because “that’s what friends do”.

While China was no doubt front and centre in the minds of many regional analysts as well as policymakers back in Washington, it was almost an afterthought in Austin’s remarks and figured near the end of his lecture. Austin struck a fine balance between emphasising confrontation and competition. The secretary repeated the US position that China’s claims in the South China Sea have “no basis in international law,” and juxtaposed Washington’s commitment to rule of law and the peaceful settlement of disputes. But he also declared his commitment “to pursuing a constructive, stable relationship with China”. Most countries in Southeast Asia are wary of being drawn into US efforts to contain China and want to maintain a balance in relations with both superpowers, though many are concerned about the threat China poses to their security.

In a now-familiar refrain, the Secretary of Defense promised, “we are not asking countries in the region to choose between the United States and China”, adding, “In fact, many of our partnerships in the region are older than the People’s Republic of China itself”. Regardless of whether one feels such a choice is inevitable or whether Washington is forcing such a decision on regional countries, given the clearly negative light in which the secretary cast Chinese behaviour, the unspoken message remains that one choice would be better than the other.

In a departure from past appearances from US officials, including President Donald Trump’s 2017 speech at APEC in Vietnam, however, Austin sounded a refreshing note of humility while remaining confident in the appeal of American values. The Secretary of Defense acknowledged, “the United States doesn’t always get it right”, pointing to recent “un-American discrimination” against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. “But we aren’t trying to hide our mistakes”, he added, emphasising that openness was a strength rather than a weakness. “When a democracy stumbles, everyone can see and hear it. It’s broadcast in loud and living colour, and not hushed up by the state”.

While the secretary was unapologetic about American values of democracy and human rights, he simultaneously avoided grandstanding in a region where such values are less represented and illiberal partners, including Singapore, the Philippines and Vietnam, remain resistant to their adoption.

Finally, Secretary Austin repeated the language of a “free and open Indo-Pacific” advocated by the Trump administration and drew on familiar themes of sovereignty and freedom from coercion. This rhetoric sent a clear signal of continuity in central areas of US policy, namely Washington’s commitment to partners and allies’ capacity to defend themselves, even as it deliberately distanced itself from the legacy of “America First”, which sowed doubt among regional partners that the US was pursuing isolationism.

Looking ahead

All told, the secretary’s remarks struck a notable balance between undesirable poles: confrontation versus competition; values versus interests; continuity versus change. He promised much-needed public goods like Covid vaccines while seeking to instil confidence in the US’ staying power and commitment to the region. And while the visit comes six months after President Biden’s election and four months after Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Japan and South Korea, perhaps the old adage “better late than never” still holds.

The speech and larger trip to the region, which Austin called the Pentagon’s “highest strategic priority”, represent a noteworthy opening gambit, but Southeast Asian policymakers and analysts will be watching closely for more tangible deliverables to follow these rhetorical pledges during his subsequent stops in Vietnam and the Philippines, both frontline states in the regional balance of power looking for support in the face of Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, which threaten their autonomy. It will take more than lofty speeches to bolster a shaky alliance with Manila and to raise the partnership with Hanoi to the next level, and an economic strategy, so far absent, should accompany a military presence if Washington is serious about reducing Beijing’s influence.

DISCLAIMER: All views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of the 9DASHLINE.com platform.

Author biography

Hunter Marston is a PhD student in the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University and a Nonresident WSD-Handa Fellow at the Pacific Forum. He is also an Associate at 9DASHLINE. Image credit: Flickr/US Secretary of Defense.