U.S. pushes for Indo-Pacific rules on digital trade, AI

Biden administration seeks 'like-minded allies' as China looks to join regional blocs

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Nov. 16. (Photo from Lee's Facebook page)

TAKASHI NAKANO and TAISEI HOYAMA, Nikkei staff writers

November 18, 2021 05:55 JST

SINGAPORE/WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Joe Biden seeks to work closer with Indo-Pacific countries to set transparent rules governing digital trade and technology, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Wednesday, as China makes a bid to join more regional economic blocs.

"Who's going to write the rules of the road for emerging technology?" Raimondo said during a Bloomberg forum in Singapore. "We want to write the rules of the road with our like-minded allies in this region."