East-West Center in the News

(2012-07-17) “The Philippines is in a strategically important location. It’s an ally. It’s smack in the middle of the South China Sea,” said Denny Roy, a senior fellow with the East-West Center in Hawaii. “Greater access to the Philippines would, no question, make some operations easier … and enable [the U.S.] to bring more forces to bear.”

... But having a short-term presence may be less important to the United States than improving ties with the Philippines, Roy said, considering the hot-bed issues in the region, which includes balancing military forces to counter the perceived rising threat from China.

Shorter deployments, he said, also could ease the pressure off Okinawa, where the United States is pressed to reduce its footprint even as it plans to shift 5,000 Marines to other places, including Hawaii and Guam, in the coming years. “It’s more a matter that the United States would make do with the best situation it can get,” he said, adding, “It’s a matter of taking an advantage to improve their positioning” in the region

(2012-07-22) “The assurance that the United States wants to send out is that the talk of our demise is greatly exaggerated. That not only do we have the strength to continue to play the role in the region that we have, but we have a commitment to do so,” said Denny Roy, a senior fellow at Honolulu’s East-West Center.

“The United States, though, is struggling to make that message believable because of its financial crisis.”

(2012-08-08) Gerry Finin, co-director of the Pacific Islands Development Program at the East West Centre in Hawaii, says Mrs Clinton has been very supportive of the change.

"In fact, she is one of the prime movers in articulating in what the pivot or the rebalancing is all about and I think this will provide her with an opportunity at the Forum to say what the pivot means for US and Pacific Island relations," he said.

Mr Finin believes China's presence in the region is a positive one. "It is a positive kind of situation to the extent that the Pacific Islands are engaged with many countries from around the globe, and obviously China is one of the major players."

He says the post-Forum dialogue can play a part in making sure relations between China and the region, and the US and the region, are on a co-operative footing - for instance, focusing more on things like aid instead of defence.

"I think that is precisely why the Secretary is interested in going - to ensure that the dialogue moves in a very productive direction and also to ensure there are open lines of communication. As you know, there are many nations that attend the post-Forum dialogue meeting so this will allow her not only to speak with people from the Pacific but from the entire Asia Pacific region as a whole."

He believes Pacific Island leaders will be "very candid" in order to get the most out of the dialogue.

"They'll be very honest in terms of the challenges that they face as national leaders and I am sure that Secretary Clinton will have a very good appreciation of that, having spent so many years in the White House herself."