US President Barack Obama faces thorny talks about the fight against the Islamic State group, climate change and human rights when he sets off this week across the Pacific for an eight-day valedictory
US President Barack Obama faces thorny talks about the fight against the Islamic State group, climate change and human rights when he sets off this week across the Pacific for an eight-day valedictory tour through Asia.
Mr Obama is to leave on Wednesday to attend back-to-back summits in Hangzhou, China, and Vientiane, Laos. Coming five months from the end of Mr Obama’s term, the White House has planned the trip as a moment to highlight his administration’s seven-year effort to expand US influence Asia, including his push for massive free-trade and a landmark climate agreement with China.
White House officials said Mr Obama will underscore the message even before leaving the US, heading first to Lake Tahoe for a series meetings on conservation and then on to Hawaii’s remote Midway Atoll, where Mr Obama recently expanded the Papahanaumokuakea Mar-ine National Monument. The White House said that Mr Obama’s stop will come with announcements of new executive actions aimed at boosting clean energy production in the US and mitigating the effect of climate change such as wildfires and drought. Mr Obama will keep up the drumbeat in China, where he is attending a meeting of the Group of 20 industrial and emerging-market economies.
