00:00People expect the United States to continue playing a role to promote peace, promote stability,
00:06and promote prosperity around the world. And in order to do that, they're going to be competing
00:11priorities, and that is inevitable. The idea that we're just going to focus on one region
00:16and not others makes no sense. I think the key is how do we balance that?
00:22Southeast Asia and the wider Indo-Pacific continue to be strategic priorities for the U.S.,
00:27said Ambassador Edgar D. Kagan, as Washington and Putra Jaya seek to build on the strong rapport
00:32between their leaders. In an exclusive interview with FMT, Kagan dismissed suggestions that the
00:39region was being neglected, despite concerns that domestic tensions and a renewed focus on the
00:44Middle East may be drawing attention elsewhere. My expectation is that in classic fashion,
00:50no matter what the United States does, it will never be seen as quite enough by countries in the
00:56region. And I would also note that it is not a zero-sum game.
01:04For years, regional governments have lamented the strategic vacuum left by the U.S., with
01:09Washington appearing to retreat from global leadership amid ongoing trade wars and rising
01:14security tensions, particularly in the South China Sea. Kagan said President Donald Trump's
01:20latest visit to the region, including to Malaysia, was proof of Washington's resolve to stay anchored in
01:25Asia, with the U.S. choosing the Indo-Pacific as its launchpad for a new wave of reciprocal trade
01:31agreements. Malaysia-U.S. relations reached a new high last month after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and
01:37Trump signed a landmark agreement upgrading relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership,
01:42which Kagan said was strengthened by recent joint efforts to resolve the Thai-Cambodia border
01:47standoff. What we saw in this case was the two leaders really hit it off. What was interesting,
01:54though, was you could see the rapport build over the course of the visit. The relationship clearly
02:01is excellent. You know, they've had a number of phone conversations. I was present for one of the
02:06phone conversations, and it's very clear that they get along very well.
02:10I'm Danis Roger Reza, FMP.
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