The Sixth East Asia Summit was held in

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on November 18–19, 2011. The

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is a nominally annual meeting of national leaders from the

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region and adjoining countries.

Attending delegations

The

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and

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of the eighteen countries participated in the summit: File:Julia Gillard 2010.jpg,

Julia Gillard Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. She held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), having previously served as the ...

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(Chairperson) File:Yoshihiko Noda-3.jpg,

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Agenda

US refocus

US President Obama made his inaugural visit to the Sixth East Asia Summit underlining the United States returned focus on the Asia Pacific region despite congressional budgetary constraints and cutbacks. This included expanded military presence in northern Australia which has neighbouring countries like Indonesia and China wary. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will make the first official US trip to Myanmar (Burma) in more than 50 years.

US military training in northern Australia

Australian Prime Minister Gillard held discussions with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono about United States military training hub in Darwin was not targeted any particular country and was there to help with disaster recovery and strengthen longstanding defence ties with the United States through

ANZUS The Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty (ANZUS or ANZUS Treaty) is a collective security agreement between Australia, New Zealand, and the United States that was signed in 1951, and from which New Zealand has been partially su ...

which is over 60 years old. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono also relayed to Australian Prime Minister Gillard, the defence exercises should involve ASEAN countries and also China to reduce tension and build trust. The Australian Prime Minister has also held talks with Chinese Premier Wen to reduce concerns about the defence arrangement. She reiterated Australia always will have an ally in Washington and a friend in Beijing.

Regional maritime dispute

The United States has stated it supported multilateral talks on a regional basis to ensure disputes in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

is resolved peacefully even though it is not a party to any territorial dispute and claims to be not taking any sides. China reinforced its view the maritime dispute should be resolved bilaterally with all the countries involved rather than involving external forces which they see as interference and added layer of complexity. China sees the United States bringing the territorial dispute in the summit as a containment policy to counter China's growing economic and political influence within the region. China has continued to emphasize its peaceful rise and endeavors to work with neighbouring countries to reach agreements on maritime disputes. The concerns of smaller countries about the growing influence of its northern neighbour has allowed the United States to become more involved in the region and coincide with some of their interests to counterbalance China. This also has the effect of countries having stronger individual voices to negotiate with China.

Myanmar

President Obama has said he is dispatching Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Myanmar in the next few weeks to engage in dialogue about better ties with the United States. The Burmese government is civilian run since March 2011. The United States stressed China was advised of the visit and not replacing Myanmar's strong ties with China. They also stated China would want to see a stable Myanmar adjacent to its border and reduce risk such as political instability and refugees. China is a longstanding supporter of resource rich Myanmar and has provided financial and investment support. The Burmese government has reacted they will continue on the path of opening up through relaxing political restrictions and releasing political prisoners. Myanmar has been chosen as host of the ASEAN summit to be held in 2014 despite concerns from human rights groups the reforms are not enough. Other countries have stated granting the chairing of the ASEAN conference will encourage the Myanmar civilian government to continue the pace of change in the country which has been economically and politically isolated by embargo and restrictions.

Outcome

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev did not attend and was represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key also did not attend and was represented by Foreign Minister Murray McCully. The other members' leaders attended.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:East Asia Summit 06 2011 conferences 2011 in international relations 21st-century diplomatic conferences ASEAN meetings 2011 in Indonesia Diplomatic conferences in Indonesia History of Bali November 2011 in Asia 2010s political conferences