国际英语新闻：U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Campbell to visit Asia

WASHINGTON, March 5 (Xinhua) -- Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell will visit Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Indonesia, Thailand and Japan, U.S. State Department announced on Friday.

Campbell will leave for Singapore on Sunday and conclude the Asian tour on March 17. Strengthening alliance with Japan and developing partnership with the five members of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would highlight Campbell's agenda.

President Barack Obama will visit Indonesia in this month and launch a comprehensive partnership with the world's most populous Muslim country, where he spent part of his childhood.

Ahead of the tour, Campbell on Wednesday told a hearing held by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs that U.S. policy toward the Asia-Pacific region is to ensure the country acts as a "resident power."

"The Asia-Pacific region is of vital and permanent importance to the United States and it is clear that countries in the region want the United States to maintain a strong and active presence. Our policy will ensure that the United States acts as a resident power and not just as a visitor, because what happens in the region has a direct effect on our security and economic well-being, " he said.

According to Campbell, the most significant global challenges, such as climate change, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and widespread poverty will become "highly acute" in Asia in the next few decades, the United States must play a leading role by strengthening and broadening our alliances, building new partnerships, and enhancing capacity of multilateral organizations.