THE U.S. Embassy in the Philippines convened 250 youth leaders representing all 10 Asean member states for a 5-day advanced leadership training at the 2017 Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Summit in Manila from October 17-21, 2017. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim welcomed the delegates to Manila and encouraged them to be a force for positive change. He noted that “the 110,000 strong YSEALI network and the United States government are here to support you and your work as we build the future of Asean together.”Through lectures, hands-on activities, and simulations, the 2017 YSEALI Summit equipped these rising Asean leaders to address the complex political, social, economic, and environmental issues confronting ASEAN today. In his remarks, U.S. Mission to Asean Ambassador Daniel Shields described the deepening relationship between the United States and Asean, noting, “Asean is America’s 4th largest trading partner. The United States invested over $274 billion in Asean by 2015 -- more than in the Chinese, Indian, Japanese and South Korean economies combined.”Susan Thornton, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, took questions from delegates via video conference.

Source: The Standard October 31, 2017 12:56 UTC