Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO), Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) on Monday announced their efforts were successful in securing an amendment to the Senate budget proposal that will require an independent review of government resources being used to support President Barack Obama’s “Asia Pivot” or “Asia Rebalance” policy.
The policy was implemented by President Obama in 2011, and is designed to largely increase United States engagement and influence in the Asia-Pacific region.
The budget amendment would mandate that an independent agency, like the Government Accountability Office, review and provide a detailed account of all U.S. government expenditures regarding the “Asia Pivot” policy and offer recommendations on how those resources can be more efficiently allocated while still meeting the program’s objectives.
“I agree with the intent of the ‘Asia Pivot’ policy, but I want to ensure that our policy goals can be realized,” Gardner, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy, said. “It’s important that the American people have a full accounting of the resources that have been devoted to this important policy and whether they have been prioritized effectively. The East-Asia Pacific region comprises 35 countries and nearly a third of the world’s population, and we must ensure that our policy in the region strengthens existing friendships and builds new partnerships that will be critical to US national security for generations to come.”
Cardin, the committee’s ranking member, said the U.S. must continue to strengthen its commitment to engage Asia’s growing powers.
“The high number of U.S. activities we already have with our partners and allies in the region prove that, in many respects, we have already (become) rebalanced,” Cardin said. “On behalf of the American taxpayers, we should have an independent study to ensure that the U.S. government is investing its precious resources in the most effective way possible. The Asia-Pacific region is a strategic long-term priority for America; we cannot allow recent crises elsewhere to distract us from continuing to ramp up our engagement.”
As ranking member on the Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez said the “Asia Pivot” is one of the most strategically farsighted and significant policies being pursued by Obama.
“Given the importance of the Asia-Pacific region to U.S. security and prosperity, it is an approach that enjoys broad bipartisan support,” he said. “But its success will rise or fall on our ability to effectively and efficiently marshal resources across the entirety of the United States government — not just for military activities, but for diplomacy, communication, cultural engagement and economic statecraft, too. This amendment helps assure that we have the tools, focus and dedication necessary to resource the rebalance appropriately.”