“Good evening to everyone in the US and good morning to those from Asia and Europe. It gives me immense pleasure to be part of this dialogue amongst all the eminent dignitaries present here today. 

As TV debates and social media are raging on what is happening around one country, we are here to discuss a topic, which is not just of global importance, but events relevance as well. We are here to discuss the future of the US-Asia relationship, against the backdrop of a waning social-economic promise of the US.

It is undeniable that America is in a very critical stage of a new world order that is getting created. The dollar is competing against the omnipresent Yuan. Smaller regions are getting stronger by joining hands to pursue economic integration. And the public sentiment is changing in the face of the continuation of America's first policies by the Biden administration. So what does that mean for the US-Asia relationship? 

Before we explore that, we need to understand whether the US has indeed weakened over the last half-century, and the United States has dominated world economics for most of the post-cold war era. The globalisation connected the world through the flow of goods, services, and manpower across borders. But for the last decade or so, we are seeing a steady decrease in the US pre-eminence in the world geopolitical and economic rankings, on account of a number of reasons. It could have started with two unpopular wars after the 911 attacks. 

Back then, America had given a bold sentiment with claims of WMD, and my way or the highway stance, hope had come in the form of the Obama administration. But beyond the initial euphoria and brilliant speeches, its impact did not create any significant waves of change. And the election of the Trump administration, with its America first policies crafted to drive investments into the US, especially in manufacturing, openly saw the rest of the world getting restless. This was exacerbated by deficit spending is geopolitical overreach. And it's the increasingly active stance to unilaterally decide on conflicts, or go solo on world affairs. 

At the end of the globe, and increasingly richer and assertive China was making a clear mark on the socio-economic landscape of the world. Even recently, America lost a major opportunity to step up to a world leadership role in fighting COVID and the void between the East and the West even got deeper. 

All this could paint a dark picture for America. But there is hope in the form of the education sector. Education was most affected by the pandemic, which totally disrupted the status quo. 

The post-pandemic, the education world has changed dramatically. Especially when we look at the countries in Asia, where students have not been able to attend face to face classes on the campus for more than 24 months. And classrooms have morphed into virtual classrooms, and few of them are making it through the hybrid classes. 

But slowly the world is opening up. For example, students in countries like the Philippines and India have recently joined back to school after a long gap and shifted paradigm somewhat seems to be beneficial for American education. 

How is that? Well, American universities have always acted like magnets for students across the globe, looking at higher studies, due to numerous factors such as academic excellence, innovation, ecosystem, cultural diversity, etc. That pull of the American universities has become stronger for the brighter Asian students because of the country's solid reputation, offering research-driven higher education programmes. As for the QS World Rankings 22, five of the top 10 universities and 26 of the top 100 universities are from the US.

Moreover, US businesses put an emphasis on allowing international students who have American education credentials, the ability to work in the US after they graduate. For Asian students, they feel the universities in the US give them a better competitive edge as compared to universities in other regions.

So what is it that America can do to change the narrative? Well, one thing I can think of is respecting diversity and being more welcoming. Not to miss the fragmented or scattered nature of US education, which works as a boon for them, as a student gets the opportunity to explore various tools, technologies, curriculum, etc., and see what works best for that. 

Coming back to the US-Asia Pacific ties, America still considers ASEAN as a prime destination for investments in the Indo-Pacific region. According to a piece of recent news published in the Financial Times, over the next two years, the GDP in Asia will rise faster than in the US or Europe, strengthening its position as the largest and the fastest-growing economic bloc. It is expected to rise to 39 trillion in 2023, exceeding 34 trillion for the Americas and 26 trillion for Europe. 

America is still considered as the most preferred hotspot by the students applying for higher studies and professionals seeking opportunities from across the globe. So as per the estimate created by the US Department of Commerce, in 2019, international students contributed 44 billion to the US economy. That here, the amount of money the US government spent, to help COVID vaccines was almost equivalent to the amount incurred by Chinese students on American education. 

However, given the US-China tussle, there has been a very interest among some Asian students to consider alternative destinations for their further studies. 

According to the CommonApp, fewer Chinese students applied for American universities in 2021, representing a drop of 80% compared with the previous year cycle. So the rising cost of U.S higher education, visa issues/ delays, travel restrictions, increase in anti-Asian racism, and the rising tensions between the US and China are some of the key factors for dropping application numbers among aspiring students. However, there has been an overall increase in the number of international applications does a shift in the focus of including students from other countries as well acts as a boon for the United States. 

So in 2019-2020, academic year 35% of the international students seeking enrolments in the US originated from China, 18% from India, 5% from South Korea, and 3% from Saudi Arabia. Though there has been a decline in the total number of Indian students pursuing an education, the US remains a favourite destination for studying abroad. 

As for ASEAN countries, approximately 60,000 students are studying in the United States. As far as Singapore is concerned, 3500 Singaporean students are studying in the US. So given the fact that the US is losing its stance in the global arena for all social-political reasons, however, it is unlikely to significantly impact its capital markets are chasing the American dreams. And when we talk about the position in the education sector, it is still the most preferred place for students looking to study abroad. 

Also, considering the impact of the current crisis in Ukraine, and other European voles, a lot of aspiring students will shift their focus from some European countries to the US. So in conclusion, the US and Asia will have their issues ongoing, but the US continues to be positioned as a strong destination for higher education and shall remain so in the future for the next few decades. Thank you very much.”

Watch the video here.