Sawt Falasteen - Asian leaders meet in Laos with US, Russia on world turmoil

The usually tranquil, temple-lined streets of the landlocked nation's capital Vientiane have been briefly transformed into a hub of global diplomacy for the annual East Asia Summit, on the heels of meetings of the 10-country ASEAN regional bloc.

The summit marks a rare occasion when the United States and Russia, both represented by their top diplomats, will sit together in the same room.

No one-on-one talks are expected between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, with the US administration doubting Moscow's sincerity in its calls for talks on the Ukraine war.

Vice President Kamala Harris, seeking the White House in next month's election, has made clear she will not negotiate with Russia without involvement by Ukraine's government.

The annual East Asia Summit rarely produces major breakthroughs but divisions are expected to be especially pronounced this year due to disagreements over Ukraine, the Middle East and China.

- China tensions -

Most countries are sending their top leaders to the summit, which marks the diplomatic debut of Japan's security-minded new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who in the past has called for a NATO-style Asian pact with an unstated goal of protecting against China.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang made a swipe at Ishiba during talks Thursday that brought together ASEAN leaders with China, Japan and South Korea.

Li warned of the danger of "attempts to introduce bloc confrontation and geopolitical conflicts into Asia".

But Li also got an earful from Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, who challenged China over increasingly violent incidents in recent months in the South China Sea as Beijing asserts disputed claims.

Tensions are also high over Taiwan, where President Lai Ching-te vowed Thursday to "resist annexation" by Beijing, which claims the self-governing democracy.

China lashed out at Lai's speech. Tensions between China and the United States, however, have eased markedly over the past year, with Blinken and President Joe Biden supporting dialogue to avoid full-out confrontation.

The East Asia Summit has long been a way to bring the United States into Asian diplomacy more formally, but Biden is skipping for the second straight year, with the United States facing both a presidential election and a major hurricane.

The summit marks a break for Blinken from frenetic diplomacy on the Middle East, where Israel has been pounding Hezbollah in Lebanon a year into its Gaza war triggered by the unprecedented Hamas attack.

The United States has faced criticism over its support from Israel by Russia and China but also by usually US-friendly countries with Muslim majorities -- notably Malaysia and Indonesia.

G.AbuGhazaleh--SF-PST