Newly installed US–ASEAN Business Council (USABC) President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ted Osius is seeing huge potential for growth in Southeast Asia with United States companies looking at opportunities for diversification in the region, particularly on supply chains.
Osius relayed this message to Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. during their meeting in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, Sept. 8.
Locsin, along with Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, is currently in Washington, D.C. to join the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the US-Philippines diplomatic relations.
In their meeting, the two discussed ways to further expand the three-decade-old partnership between the Philippines and USABC, noting that USABC has been instrumental in ensuring that United States businesses find a reliable trade and investment partner and hub for their regional operations in the Philippines.
Osius served as US ambassador to Vietnam from 2014 to 2017 and assumed his post at the USABC on Aug. 23.
USABC is an organization whose main mission is to promote US trade and investment in the 10-member ASEAN composed of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
With the current COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the region, the USABC under Osius is likely to focus on emergency response to support countries in the region that need their help.
Locsin invited the US-ASEAN Business Council to resume business missions to the Philippines as soon as possible, to effectively support the country’s post-pandemic recovery efforts.
The DFA secretary told Osius that President Duterte’s restoration of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) puts the relationship between the Philippines and the United States back on track and restores the security balance in the Asia-Pacific.
Osius said President Duterte’s decision gives fresh impetus to further broaden Philippines-United States engagement, especially in the economic sphere.
Founded in 1984, the US-ASEAN Business Council has 170 member companies that generates nearly $7 trillion in revenue and employ more than 14.5 million people.
It has offices in Washington, New York, Bangkok, Hanoi, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Singapore and Yangon.