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What Xi got out of his meeting with Biden
The summit has been vital for the Chinese President’s bid to stabilise the domestic situation, and potentially to gain more access to US businesses.
Tom Harper
UPDATED
20 NOV 2023, 5:00 PM SGT in Straits Times.
The meeting, at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) conference, was slightly longer than expected, at four hours. This has been taken as a sign that the relationship between the two superpowers is warming up slightly after a significantly rocky period, marked by a trade war and a Chinese spy balloon entering US airspace.
After the meeting, Mr Xi said the doors between the two countries cannot “be closed again”.
There have been some small but important steps in potentially reducing the risk of a potential Cold War. Avoiding another Cold War has been one of Mr Xi’s key objectives, outlined in what has been labelled the “Five No’s” stated at the 2021 Alaska summit between China’s director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Yang Jiechi and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Mr Biden said after the San Francisco summit that while the China-US relationship is competitive, his responsibility is to make it “rational and manageable”.
The summit has been vital for Mr Xi’s bid to stabilise China’s domestic situation, and potentially to gain more access to US businesses. There were signs this was paying off, with a number of important US business leaders headed to San Francisco to meet with the Chinese President. This comes at a time of significant turmoil in the Chinese economy, which include high levels of youth unemployment and an export slump.
Mr Xi seeks a level playing field for Chinese firms in the US, while also aiming to show foreign investors that China is still open for business and investment. In advance of the summit, Beijing has sought to win over US business leaders, who are seen as less hawkish on China than their political counterparts as well as being the primary beneficiaries of US-China trade.
This was demonstrated by the visits earlier in 2023 of Microsoft’s Bill Gates and Apple’s Tim Cook to China, where they received a bigger reception than many heads of state. China views the trade tensions between the US and itself as having adverse effects on US businesses too, which it hopes it can use to lobby Washington to moderate its stance towards Beijing. As a result, winning over business leaders such as Mr Cook and Mr Gates is just as important as convincing political leaders such as Mr Biden.
This summit can also be seen as furthering Beijing’s efforts to improve its relationships with many Western nations, underlined also by the visit of the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Beijing on Nov 4. This marks a departure from its earlier aggressive foreign policy stance dubbed “wolf warrior” diplomacy. The way the summit has unfolded may have been a sign that China does not want further confrontation with the West right now.
Mr Biden’s statement that Washington does not support full Taiwanese independence, while still being concerned about Chinese military intervention on the self-governing island, gives Mr Xi a bit more breathing space to focus elsewhere, perhaps de-escalating tension between the two over the long-term future for Taiwan.
A pause in the tension with the US is potentially useful for both Beijing and Washington as they grapple with their own domestic politics, and conflict around the world.
Possibly the most significant obstacle to Mr Xi’s goals at the summit have been the economic tensions between the US and China, which peaked under Donald Trump’s leadership. These tensions have been highlighted by the discussion over “de-risking” ties with China by the US and its allies. This would involve the termination or restriction of business ties with Chinese entities. Beijing views this as a US effort to constrain its economic development.
Talk of “decoupling”, by cutting trade with China, has largely been dismissed by senior US officials, such as Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen and Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer.
China’s strengths
There are several reasons for China to be confident in its negotiating powers with the US. One of these can be seen in the apparent failure of the US-led trade war to stymie China’s technological development, with restrictive measures such as chip curbs resulting in Chinese firms switching to Huawei processors.
Such moves have cost US firms such as Nvidia the Chinese market, while seemingly making little impact on Chinese innovation. This, in turn, has lessened the amount of economic leverage that the US has over China.
The US has its own strategic challenges, with the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza placing American capacities under greater strain. In China’s eyes, an overextended US is less willing to open a third front in Asia.
What did the Chinese get out of Biden-Xi meeting?
US and China must remain in close touch, PM Lee says, especially in view of hot-spot events in 2024
This further strengthens China’s position, with the additional benefit of these conflicts strengthening China’s influence in Russia and the developing world. As a result, China’s diplomatic standing and clout is perhaps stronger than expected.
So far, there have been a few token agreements such as resumption of high-level communication contact between the US and Chinese militaries, which marks a notable de-escalation in the tensions between the two.
While Apec is a step in the right direction for reducing Sino-US tensions, it is somewhat doubtful that Mr Xi has won everything that Beijing wanted. Meanwhile, Mr Biden will be scrutinised by the opposition for not giving too much away to China. This is pertinent because he faces an election in 2024, where his most likely opponent is Donald Trump, who was famous for his hardline stance on China. Consequently, any concession to Beijing may cost Mr Biden dearly in his bid to be re-elected.
What can be delivered from the summit is a pause in China-US tension rather than an end to it. In the face of the challenges in restructuring China’s economy and the US’s geopolitical quagmires, perhaps breathing room is the best that Beijing and Washington can hope for.
- Tom Harper is Lecturer in International Relations at the University of East London. This article was first published in The Conversation.
Old photo, birthday wish, ravioli lunch: Personal diplomacy on display during Xi-Biden meeting
Will the summit by the bay keep tensions at bay? Biden-Xi talks raise hopes
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Biden and Xi talk past each other in San Francisco
The agreements from their recent summit cover important issues, but their ultimate significance is questionable.
UPDATED
20 NOV 2023, 5:00 AM SGT in Straits Times.
The much anticipated face-to-face meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping finally took place at a grand villa outside San Francisco on Nov 15, 2023.
After four hours of talks, both leaders emerged with news of a clutch of token bilateral agreements, including resumption of military-to-military communications and anti-narcotics cooperation.
That Mr Biden and Mr Xi met at all was a source of relief to many, given the wider implications of increasingly acrimonious United States-China ties.
The talks also gave both leaders a chance to bolster their statesmanship credentials for their respective home audiences.
But on the big geopolitical issues, Mr Biden and Mr Xi mostly talked past each other, leaving US-China relations in a state of vulnerability to a deeper crisis.
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The Straits Times’ Editorial says
Setting a floor to US-China ties
UPDATED
21 NOV 2023, 5:00 AM SGT in Straits Times.
Perhaps the most important thing about the summit between United States President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping was that after months of planning, the meeting actually did take place.
Despite low expectations, it has produced some useful results – direct military-to-military contacts will resume, and there were agreements to discuss potential risks of artificial intelligence, and cooperation on climate change.
Also, China will help curb the flow of fentanyl feeding the US opioid crisis.
Mr Xi will probably get a minor domestic boost from visuals of being treated as an equal by the leader of the pre-eminent superpower.
Mr Biden described his talks with Mr Xi as “most constructive and most productive”.
Should both sides act in good faith hereafter, these outcomes can help keep US-China tensions from getting out of control amid several looming trigger points that could cause ties to deteriorate, not least of which is Taiwan’s presidential election.
So low are the hopes for a broader improvement of ties; after all, the US has made clear in word and deed that its intention is to put “guard rails” on the relationship.
There is also no indication yet that Mr Xi succeeded in persuading Mr Biden to end America’s high-technology squeeze on China.
The slide in Chinese stocks soon after the summit underscores the broad sentiment that major changes in the relationship are unlikely. As Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said, US-China ties are not amenable to quick fixes.
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Opportunities aplenty for Singapore even in an uncertain world, says PM Lee as Apec meet ends
UPDATED
1 HOUR AGO on 18th Nov 2023 in Straits Times.
SAN FRANCISCO – Even in a complicated world bereft of strategic stability and spewing dire warnings on trade, opportunities are multiplying for Singapore, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said as he wrapped up his six-day working visit to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum.
There are plenty of signs that Singapore is making good and there is room to grow, PM Lee told Singapore media in San Francisco on Nov 17.
Some of the reasons for hope, he said, include a new Asia-Pacific economic initiative on the horizon; the broadening of Apec’s agenda beyond trade; a sliver of hope from the Biden-Xi summit; and the admirable dynamism of Singaporean start-ups that have cracked the Silicon Valley code.
The 30th annual meeting of the 21 Apec economies ended with a declaration reaffirming determination “to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive, and predictable trade and investment environment”.
Apec members also backed moves to reform the World Trade Organisation, including reviving its hobbled dispute settlement system. Support for ending the bloody Gaza conflict and Ukraine war did not figure in the final joint communique.
“Even in a complicated world, there are opportunities,” PM Lee said.
“We are not the last in queue to reach those opportunities. In fact, we are quite high up the list, and we should get further up.”
Prospects remain challenging for global growth, but there are upsides for Singapore, he said.
“The markets are there; the opportunities are there. We have to seize them, and we have to be able to export, to get people to notice Singapore and want to come to Singapore.
“I think that is happening,” he added, pointing to the launch of Enterprise Singapore’s San Francisco Overseas Centre on Nov 14, its third in the United States.
The government agency, which supports Singaporean firms’ overseas ambitions, has seen a 23 per cent increase in companies exploring or entering the US market over the last five years. Nearly 200 Singapore companies now operate in the US, in areas spanning from healthcare to fintech to manufacturing and retail. Larger ones, such as ST Engineering and Singtel, have set up corporate venture capital arms in the US to invest in start-ups.
PM Lee said it is particularly encouraging that there are Singaporeans – including young men and women – in the US running their own start-ups and enterprises.
“Some of them, they started their company here, and went back to Singapore and started a branch, and they are recruiting in Singapore and bringing the people here to work.
“So that is one way to do it – to go out to the world and do business where the world is.”
The other way is to bring the companies into Singapore, he added, by ensuring that the nation makes it possible for them to do things in Singapore that they cannot do elsewhere.
Update trade rules and reform WTO, says PM Lee at Apec leaders’ retreat
US and China must remain in close touch, PM Lee says, especially in view of hot-spot events in 2024
Recalling a business roundtable he held with American companies, PM Lee said he had met businessmen who had up to 10,000 employees in Singapore.
“Around the world, their business goes up, goes down, but in Singapore, they are stable, and they are growing and recruiting some more.”
Besides increasing headcount, companies are also making Singapore their headquarters, and siting corporate functions such as training and finance in the Republic – “and they think they can do it better in Singapore than they can do elsewhere”, he added.
“Our responsibility is to make them welcome, to create an environment, and also to get Singaporeans to understand that this is adding jobs and opportunities for us.”
This includes ensuring that Singapore has enough houses, trains and other infrastructural elements to accommodate all the people who want to be in the country, he said. “We have to open arms to bring people in.”
PM Lee also welcomed a fairer business environment as more countries adopt anti-corruption standards.
On Nov 16, the 14 nations that are members of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) declared on the sidelines of the Apec meeting that they had substantially concluded agreements on clean energy and anti-corruption measures.
They also signed a landmark agreement on devising resilient supply chains.
Singapore is very strict on anti-corruption, but practices vary in the region, PM Lee noted.
“I think the more countries can agree to uphold rules for operating cleanly and free of corruption, the easier it is for our businesses to operate.
“So, the tighter the rules where they are operating, the more level the playing field they will be able to have, and we hope the more opportunities they will get doing business fairly,” he said.
He also saw potential for Singapore to benefit from IPEF’s clean energy pillar, which may aid the nation’s quest for partners to scale up supply chains for its low-carbon hydrogen strategy.
PM Lee says trade deals are no cakewalk as Biden’s Asia-Pacific economic initiative stalls
Apec must pull together to make a faster switch to clean energy, says PM Lee
Low-carbon hydrogen is a fuel that is made in a way that creates little to no greenhouse gas emissions compared with conventional fossil-based hydrogen.
The IPEF is US President Joe Biden’s signature economic initiative in the region. But to the disappointment of its export-driven Asian partners, his administration buckled under pressure from his party’s progressive and pro-labour wings and did not surface and agreement on trade.
PM Lee said: “Looking at the state of play of the political scene in the US, they do not feel that they are able to push across the finishing line yet. We understand that, (but) we hope that they will be able to do that.
“IPEF, in terms of trade, is something which is keeping the game going, but the real scoring is to come after that – it is to enable the game to move forward and score beyond what the IPEF can deliver.”
He added: “We are keeping this issue warm and we hope that when the stars line up in a better position, we will be able to make more significant progress.”
#USAPEC2023 wrapped up today with a retreat session on the topic of “Interconnectedness and Building Inclusive and…Posted by Lee Hsien Loong on Friday, November 17, 2023
Another reason for optimism was Apec’s own evolution to a grouping whose agenda had broadened beyond trade, he said.
“It talks about the green economy, it talks about digital transformation, it talks about clean economies, meaning anti-corruption, because these are all factors which contribute to the prosperity of the region.”
The global mood has changed, however. The strategic tensions have grown and the emphasis on national security has displaced priority for trade, he noted.
But the need to work together remains, he said. “Even though we may be competitors, you still have areas where you need to cooperate when it comes to climate change, the digital economy, more secure supply chains.”
He counted the Nov 16 meeting between Mr Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping as another reason for cautious hope that their stabilising relationship will yield a breather for a strained world.
But uncertainty is here to stay, he said.
For Singapore, the implication is that all burners have to be lit.
“That means you have got to export to America, you have got to attract investments from the US. You have got to do the same with China, you have got to do the same with Asean, with India, and be partners with all of them, even though they may not all be partners with one another,” he said.
PM Lee calls for US to stay invested in Asia
Chicken rice, selfies and geopolitics: Silicon Valley Singaporeans enjoy an evening with PM Lee
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PM Lee heads to San Francisco for Apec summit
Sharon See
Published Mon, Nov 13, 2023 · 6:00 pm in business times.com.sg
In San Francisco, PM Lee Hsien Loong is expected to meet Governor of California Gavin Newsom and business leaders from prominent US companies.
[SAN FRANCISCO] Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is making a working visit to San Francisco this week to attend the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit at the invitation of US President Joe Biden.
He will be in the Californian city from Monday (Nov 13) until Saturday, said a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
At the Apec Economic Leaders’ Meeting, the grouping’s leaders are expected to “discuss ways to strengthen trade, increase supply chain resilience, tackle climate change and ensure an equitable and inclusive future” under the theme “Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All”.
PM Lee will also hold bilateral meetings with other Apec leaders on the sidelines of the summit.
Apec’s 21 member economies are Australia; Brunei; Canada; Chile; China; Hong Kong; Indonesia; Japan; Malaysia; Mexico; New Zealand; Papua New Guinea; Peru; The Philippines; Russia; Singapore; South Korea; Taiwan; Thailand; the US; and Vietnam.
Collectively, the group represents 40 per cent of the world’s population, about 60 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product and nearly half of global trade.
SEE ALSO
Apec ministers agree to prioritise interconnectivity, innovation and inclusivity
Ahead of the summit, PM Lee will meet California governor Gavin Newsom and business leaders from prominent US companies, including Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai and Apple CEO Tim Cook.
PM Lee will also launch Enterprise Singapore’s new overseas centre in San Francisco and meet Singaporeans living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
He will be accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and senior officials from PMO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
While PM Lee is away, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will be the acting prime minister.
At an event last month, Wong said Singapore is hoping for substantial progress in the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) discussions in time for the Apec summit.
While the summit is a forum mainly for economic discussions, observers say a key question this year is whether Biden would be able to rally all 21 members towards a consensus amid rising global geopolitical tensions.
A Reuters report last week noted that IPEF negotiations are ongoing, with announcements expected on cooperation to accelerate the clean energy transition and to fight corruption and tax evasion. The first of the framework’s four pillars, on strengthening supply chains, was completed earlier this year.
Meanwhile, all eyes will be on a highly anticipated bilateral meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping in the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday. The last time Xi travelled to the US was in 2017 when he met with then president Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
This will be the first time Biden and Xi are coming together face-to-face since they last met in Bali on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) conference. Relations between the world’s two largest economies thawed following the meeting but took a turn for the worse after US authorities shot down an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon earlier this year.
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An Overview of Singapore’s Free Trade Agreements
August 1, 2023Posted by ASEAN BriefingWritten by Ayman Falak MedinaReading Time: 5 minutes
Singapore’s extensive free trade agreements (FTA) and transparent administrative system have been credited with accelerating the country’s transformation to a first-world economy. The country’s 15 bilateral, 12 regional FTAs and digital economy agreements (DEAs) include some of the largest combined trade agreements in the ASEAN-China, ASEAN-India, and ASEAN-Hong Kong trade blocs—providing Singapore-based businesses with access to preferential markets, free or reduced import tariffs, as well as enhanced intellectual property regulations.
Despite regional players maintaining strong FTA networks, they are not as extensive as Singapore’s. Due to these factors, the country will continue to be the default location for businesses seeking to expand into Southeast Asia and neighboring regions.
What are the types of FTAs?
There are two types of FTAs: bilateral (agreements between Singapore and a single trading partner) and regional (signed between Singapore and a group of trading partners).
| Singapore’s Bilateral Free Trade Agreements | |
| China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (CSFTA) | Peru-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (PeSFTA) |
| European Union-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA) | Singapore-Australia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) |
| India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) | Singapore-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement (SCRFTA) |
| Japan-Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement (JSEPA) | Singapore-Jordan Free Trade Agreement (SJFTA) |
| Korea-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (KSFTA) | Sri Lanka – Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA) |
| New Zealand-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Partnership (ANZSCEP) | Turkey-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (TRSFTA) |
| Panama-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (PSFTA) | United Kingdom-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (UKSFTA) |
| United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (USSFTA) | |
| Singapore’s Regional Free Trade Agreements | |
| ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) | ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) |
| ASEAN-Hong Kong, China Free Trade Area (AHKFTA) | ASEAN-India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) |
| ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) | ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Area (AKFTA) |
| ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) | Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) |
| EFTA-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (ESFTA) | GCC-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (GSFTA) |
| Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) | Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership (TPSEP) |
How to apply for tariff concessions for exporting goods from Singapore
Once a Singaporean company has identified its target market, it can start applying for tariff concessions through the Enterprise Singapore website.
Digital economy agreements
Through a digital-only trade agreement, Singapore aims to develop international frameworks to support businesses engaging in cross-border digital trade and e-commerce. DEAs will encourage greater cooperation in nascent areas, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and facilitate interoperability between digital systems, providing organizations the capacity to trial new technologies across different countries.
DEAs are part of the Singapore government’s strategy to strengthen underlying infrastructure to build up its footprint as a global tech and e-commerce hub, as well as add to the country’s extensive FTA network.
Singapore’s Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) with New Zealand and Chile came into effect on January 7, 2021. DEPA was first signed in June 2020 and is the world’s first ‘digital only’ trade agreement. On February 25, 2022, Singapore and the United Kingdom signed the UK-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement (UKSDEA), making the agreement the first digitally-focused trade deal ever signed by a European nation.
In addition to the DEPA and UKSDEA, Singapore has signed the following DEAs:
- The Singapore-Australia Digital Economy Agreement (SADEA);
- The EU-Singapore Digital Partnership (EUSDP); and
- The Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership Agreement (KSDPA).
How can businesses benefit from DEPA?
DEPA will establish new approaches to digital trade issues, such as data innovation and ease of cross-border data flow to promote AI. The digital economy agreement will ultimately help businesses lower the costs of operations and improve access to each other’s markets.
Paperless trade
A key feature of DEPA is that it will encourage paperless trade, thus reducing time for cargo clearance and any document transits.
Technology can be used to ensure document authenticity and provenance, which improves the efficiency of the trade. A Singapore exporter, for instance, can simply apply for an e-certificate of origin and SPS certificate for their shipment. These trade documents will then be sent digitally to the customs of the destination country.
Research conducted by Maersk and IBM found that paper trade documents can add as much as 20 percent of the costs of moving goods, in addition to a 10-day waiting time for the documents to be processed.
Fintech and e-payments
DEPA will encourage greater acceptance of e-payment solutions due to greater interoperability between payment systems. This will also enable secure cross-border payments and support more non-financial institutions, such as fintech firms, to offer such services.
Moreover, to complement this digital trade agreement, Singapore approved the country’s first digital banking licenses in early December 2020, enabling non-bank entities to offer the same services as traditional banks except they operate without a physical setup.
Electronic invoicing
DEAs will allow e-invoices in Singapore to be recognized in Chile, UK, and New Zealand in addition to increased accuracy, efficiency, and reliability of commercial transactions.
Singaporean small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can also participate in the country’s e-invoicing network by adopting the Pan-European Public Procurement On-Line (PEPPOL) e-invoicing solutions. Through PEPPOL, e-invoices are generated, transmitted, and processed digitally, without requiring manual inputs. PEPPOL is in use in over 30 countries and as of December 2020, over 27,000 local businesses are connected to the system.
Digital identities
DEAs like DEPA will enable countries to develop safe and secure digital identities. This can significantly streamline business processes from opening bank accounts to company registration.
Partners within DEPA can facilitate initiatives that promote the compatibility of different digital identity regimes. In doing so, procedures such as Know-Your-Client (KYC) checks by banks can be done more efficiently and in any DEPA partner country, since the bank only requires the company’s digital identity. This due diligence process currently can take over three months to complete.
Data innovation and artificial intelligence
Parties to a DEPA will allow data to flow freely across borders which, in turn, facilitates a conducive environment for businesses to develop new products and services from data-driven innovations. This includes the adoption of an ethical AI governance framework so that DEPA partner countries harness AI in a responsible manner.
Furthermore, this digital agreement means businesses can pilot and commercialize their data-driven products and services with overseas counterparts from the DEPA, therefore accelerating cross border innovation.
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August 23, 2023 | 9:00 AM PDT / 12:00 PM EDT
In this webinar, a panel of Business Intelligence Leaders will help you understand key differences between the main markets in South / Southeast Asia and discuss their evolving supply chain ecosystems, enabling you to make informed decisions to de-risk your supply chain.
Personal data protection
DEPA will ensure greater personal data protection, particularly as data will be transferred across borders. Businesses in Singapore can currently apply for APEC Cross Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) certification. If they secure this certification, it will demonstrate the company’s robust data protection policies consistent with the APEC Privacy Framework.
Further, CBPR-certified businesses can exchange data with similarly certified companies from across Singapore’s DEA network, as well as with other jurisdictions that have adopted the APEC CBPR System.
Conclusion
For businesses looking to expand their operations at scale and tap into Southeast Asia’s economic potential, Singapore’s network of FTA and DEA agreements will help them leverage key market strengths—access to preferential markets, reduced import tariffs, and enhanced intellectual property regulations. They can also future-proof their enterprise by digitizing operations and streamlining financial processes in a secure manner to increase efficiencies and lower costs while ensuring ease of trade.
About Us
ASEAN Briefing is produced by Dezan Shira & Associates. The firm assists foreign investors throughout Asia and maintains offices throughout ASEAN, including in Singapore, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang in Vietnam, in addition to Jakarta, in Indonesia. We also have partner firms in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand as well as our practices in China and India. Please contact us at asean@dezshira.com or visit our website at www.dezshira.com.
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