Indonesia, Singapore stay neutral on US-China dispute despite Pompeo’s South China Sea outreach

Following Malaysia’s unusually strong rebuke last week of China’s “nine-dash line” claim in the South China Sea, the United States has reached out to the Southeast Asian nation’s immediate neighbours to reiterate American support for international law in the disputed waters.
Analysts said US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s Monday calls to foreign ministers Vivian Balakrishnan of Singapore and Indonesia’s Retno Marsudi were in keeping with Washington’s bid to denounce Beijing’s expansive claims…