NEW YORK, Oct 4 – United States Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian/Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel told reporters on Saturday that he is expected to discuss a wide range of regional and bilateral issues during his visit to Kuala Lumpur on next week.
Russel told Bernama here Friday that at the Leaders’ Summit on Countering ISIL and Violent Extremism, at the United Nations, countries from the East Asia and Pacific region had renewed their commitment to make progress by engaging civil society, religious leaders throughout the region and in undertaking projects.
He had participated in the discussions United States Secretary of State John Kerry had a couple of days back with Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman, as the chair of the ASEAN group. He said one that’s under active consideration is the stationing of a messaging centre in Malaysia with the goal is to try to give voice to those voices of moderation which need to be heard in the face of a flawed and dangerous ideology.
Russel told the reporters when he was asked to clarify what he meant by “messaging centre”, he explained that there were no final decision will be taken on a messaging centre, while Malaysia also said that they was a leading on the candidate that to serve as the host.
“There already is a messaging centre in the UAE (United Arab Emirates) that it offers I think as a hub for the regions in which like-minded countries – and particularly civil society leaders and religious leaders – can ensure that via traditional and social media means, a moderate and more credible set of messages is delivered to the broad public that counter the distorted messaging being broadcast by ISIL,” he said.
Speaking at the Leaders’ Summit on Countering ISIL and Violent Extremism, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced that Malaysia was actively exploring the possibility of establishing a regional digital counter-messaging communications centre.
Russel said he was going to Kuala Lumpur to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summit senior officials meetings, adding that this was part of the regular preparatory process that “we’re engaged in year-in and year-out in preparing for the annual leaders’ summit”. He said in the multilateral meetings, they will discuss the agenda for the US-ASEAN Leaders Meeting which will also discuss the agenda for the East Asia Summit meeting.
“And we’ll also talk more about the substance and how – for example, on the issue of the South China Sea, how the member states of the EAS which, of course, importantly include all of the claimants and particularly China, but also include important security partners such as the United States – collectively we can help to ensure that the tensions are resolved expeditiously and that the disputes also are managed in a way that’s fully compliant with international law and with good diplomatic and good neighbourly principles,” he said.
Besides the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and other bilateral issues, Russel’s Kuala Lumpur visit will also be an attempt to convey the US position on the South China Sea. He clarified that Washington takes a position that “all claims by all claimants should be made in ways that are fully consistent with international law, including and particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea”.
