Chronologies
US - Southeast Asia
Chronology from Sep 2014 to Dec 2014
: While on an unannounced visit to Hawaii, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has a golf outing with President Obama.
: Philippine government prosecutors charge US Marine Pfc. Joseph Pemberton with murder in the killing of a Filipino, saying the suspect acknowledged attacking the victim after he found out she was a transgender woman.
: US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee passes a resolution calling for a peaceful settlement of maritime conflicts in the South and East China Seas and condemns any coercive actions in those regions. The resolution also urges ASEAN and all other claimants to move toward a formal code of conduct for these waters.
: Two Vietnamese frigates make the first-ever port call by Vietnam’s Navy in the Philippines as part of goodwill visit.
: President Obama visits Myanmar for an official visit and an East Asia Summit meeting. On the sideline of the EAS meeting, he also meets Vietnam’s prime minister and Indonesia’s president.
: In separate phone calls to Myanmar President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Sui Kyi, President Obama stresses the need to address communal tensions, forge a nationwide ceasefire pact, and hold credible general elections next year.
: US Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus applauds President Jokowi’s commitment to strengthen maritime security and offers US cooperation.
: Elements of the US, Singapore, and Japanese navies take part in a joint exercise in the South China Sea, emphasizing gunnery skills and formation cruising.
: In Jakarta to attend the inauguration of Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, Secretary of State John Kerry discusses cooperation in stopping the flow of militants to Syria.
: US Marine Pfc. Joseph Pemberton is accused of killing a transgendered Filipino on Oct. 11 in an Olongopo City hotel room.
: US Pacific Command Commander Adm. Samuel Locklear visits the Philippines and meets counterpart Adm. Gregorio Catapay. They sign accords for 426 joint activities.
: Myanmar announces that it will release over 3,000 prisoners, including former military intelligence officers.
: Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh visits the US. The Obama administration partially lifts the lethal weapons ban on Vietnam.
: Annual Philippine-US Amphibious Landing Exercise (PHIBLEX) is held on Palawan and the Zambales region with 700 Philippine and 2,000 US participants.
: US-ASEAN Ministerial Meeting is held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
: 24, 2014: US Treasury Department imposes terrorism sanctions on four individuals affiliated with Indonesia’s Jemmah Islamiya as part of a global financial crackdown on individuals supporting terrorism.
: Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Rakak visits the US for the UN General Assembly. On Sept. 25, he delivers the keynote address to the Malaysia-US Business Forum to promote investment in his country.
: Philippine President Benigno Aquino visits the US to promote business relations. He also delivers a policy speech at Harvard’s Kennedy School and attends the UN Climate Change Summit in New York.
: Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh heads a delegation to Washington to discuss key issues in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations as well as trade and investment opportunities.
: Myanmar President’s Office urges the US Congress not to pass a bill that would restrict funding to the country’s military because of human rights concerns.
: Amnesty International issues a report on the situation in Thailand, condemning the detention by the military of civilians and the limits placed on freedom of expression.
: US Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert speaking in Washington states that Malaysia has invited the US to fly P-8 Poseidon surveillance flights from east Malaysia over the South China Sea. The supposed offer is subsequently denied by Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.
: Philippine National Bureau of Investigation arrests three members of an anti-China group called USAFFE, which takes its name from the former US Armed Forces in the Far East during World War II, who plotted to bomb Manila’s international airport using an improvised explosive device.