U.S. ambassador to ASEAN to end term in Jakarta: U.S. Embassy

[ad_1]

JAKARTA (ANTARA) – The U.S. Embassy in Jakarta announced that U.S. Ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Johannes Abraham will end his term in Jakarta in the coming days.

On Friday, ANTARA, JAKARTA, received a statement from the US Embassy in which a US official said: “We appreciate his efforts to strengthen the ASEAN-US partnership.”

Abraham was unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate and was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to ASEAN in September 2022.

U.S. officials said that during Ambassador Abraham’s tenure, the relationship between the United States and ASEAN was greatly expanded and deepened.

One of those was upgrading the U.S.-ASEAN relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership, something Ambassador Abraham helped negotiate, U.S. officials said.

“Both the United States and ASEAN have strengthened cooperation on key issues such as environment and climate change, health security, energy security, and human rights, and expanded cooperation with ASEAN on key issues such as cybersecurity and defense,” the U.S. official said.

U.S. officials said the United States formally endorsed ASEAN’s “Indo-Pacific Outlook,” which promoted key issues such as maritime cooperation and connectivity during Ambassador Abraham’s tenure.

“As President Biden has said, ASEAN is at the heart of the United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the ASEAN-U.S. Ministerial Meeting in Laos on July 27. “We are deeply committed to ASEAN’s centrality.”

“That means we will continue to work with and through ASEAN to address our greatest challenges, while seizing the nearly limitless opportunities we see,” Blinken noted.

“We strongly support ASEAN’s Indo-Pacific Outlook, which shares much of the same principles as their own Indo-Pacific strategy,” Blinken noted.

U.S. officials stressed that the U.S.-ASEAN Center was established during Ambassador Abraham’s tenure, and that he also contributed to the development of important people-to-people exchange programs such as the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI).

Meanwhile, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Jinhao said Ambassador Abraham is one of the most proactive diplomats in the region and a key figure in the U.S.

“During his term, he made positive contributions to the building of the ASEAN Community, especially the advancement of the comprehensive strategic partnership between ASEAN and the United States,” Kao said.

“Thanks to Ambassador Iohannis’ dedication and tireless efforts, he was able to organize the first working visit of the ASEAN Secretary-General to the United States from June 10 to 13, 2024,” he said.

Ambassador Abraham confirmed that it is an honor to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to ASEAN.

He said that over the past few years, thanks to the efforts of the US government and regional parties, the US-ASEAN relationship has reached new heights, including being upgraded to a comprehensive strategic partnership between the United States and ASEAN.

“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all my colleagues who have made this possible,” said Ambassador Abraham.

[ad_2]

Source link