US Pledges Nearly $300 Million Security Funding for Southeast Asia

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attends an ASEAN-U.S. Ministerial Meeting in Singapore, Aug. 3, 2018. (Reuters/Edgar Su)

SINGAPORE—U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pledged on Saturday, Aug. 4 to provide nearly $300 million in new security funding for Southeast Asia.

Pompeo unveiled the figure to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other officials from around the world in Singapore.

The United States said earlier this week it will invest $113 million in technology, energy and infrastructure initiatives in emerging Asia which he called “a downpayment on a new era of U.S. economic commitment to the region.”