Southeast Asia is unlikely to receive the attention and focus it has under the Obama Administration. Despite this, members of Congress will maintain a focus in the region. Particularly, the legislative will take the lead given the country’s most ardent Myanmar watchers remain in Congress. Regional concerns continue to focus around human rights concerns and radicalization. Although the Obama “pivot” to Asia may be over, a continued relationship will remain.

If the U.S. and China’s stated goals in both the G20 and the EAS hold true, Southeast Asian countries stand to benefit greatly. As is readily apparent in Myanmar, countries in the region no longer desire to be pawns in a geopolitical economic game, but rather collaborative partners to ensure fair benefits.

National League for Democracy party leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, recently led a delegation to China to discuss increasingly strained tensions. Overall, Sino-Myanmar ties remain fairly strong and Chinese investment is particularly important to Myanmar.

China does not aim at exclusive presence in Myanmar and China is willing to cooperate with other countries, including the Western economies, to promote the country’s development.