Clinton Urges Cambodia to Strike a Balance With China

Recent multi-stop visits to Asia by US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demonstrate newfound US respect for the entire continent. The previous administration’s secretary of state last scheduled meetings in Asia in 2003, reports John Pomfret for the Washington Post. Clinton’s visit was her sixth. Her goal was “to reinforce a central plank of foreign policy in the Obama administration: that the United States views Asia as key to the future and that the United States must act in this region to balance China's influence,” explains Pomfret. While in Asia, Obama criticized China’s low renminbi policy as creating world economic imbalance as Clinton sought to bring diplomatic balance to the region. For example, during her trip to Cambodia, Clinton nudged the country not to be too reliant on China which provided $200 million in aid last year. The American move carries new context when its former enemies in Asia, Japan and Vietnam, view the US as a balance to China’s influence in the region. – YaleGlobal