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EXIM President and Chairman Kimberly A. Reed joined a panel on expanding commercial opportunities at the Indo-Pacific Business Forum. Left to right: Chairman Reed; Dr. Kobsak Pootrakool, deputy secretary general to the prime minister of Thailand; Brian Davis, president of Honeywell ASEAN; Jay Collins, vice chairman of Corporate Investment Banking, Citi; and moderator Kasemsit Pathomsak, deputy secretary general, Thai Chamber of Commerce.

Bangkok - Kimberly A. Reed, president and chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM), participated in the Indo-Pacific Business Forum and the East Asia Summit yesterday where she met with government and private-sector leaders to emphasize how EXIM can help facilitate trade in the Indo-Pacific region while creating American jobs at home.

The Indo-Pacific Business Forum focused on promoting trade, investment, and economic cooperation throughout the Indo-Pacific region. The forum was co-organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Thai Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand and the U.S. ASEAN Business Council, and was supported by the U.S. and the Royal Thai governments. In addition to Chairman Reed, participating from EXIM were Stephen Renna, chief banking officer, and Isabel Galdiz, vice president of international relations.

At the forum yesterday, Chairman Reed and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) Chairman and CEO Atsuo Kuroda signed a reciprocal co-financing agreement that will enable either EXIM or NEXI to take the lead as the "one-stop shop" on co-financed transactions supporting exports from the United States and Japan. Joining Chairman Reed and Chairman Kuroda on stage to witness the signing ceremony in front of an audience of nearly 1,000 business and government leaders were U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur L. Ross, an ex officio member of EXIM's board of directors; Tatsuya Terazawa, special advisor to the minister, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Government of Japan; Keith Krach, U.S. under secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment; and Joseph Young, charge d'affaires ad interim, U.S. Embassy Tokyo.

Chairman Reed spoke on a panel focused on "Expanding Commercial Opportunities in the Indo-Pacific." The panel was moderated by Kasemsit Pathomsak, deputy secretary general of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, and also included Dr. Kobsak Pootrakool, deputy secretary general to the prime minister of Thailand; Jay Collins, vice chairman of corporate investment banking for Citi; and Brian Davis, president of Honeywell ASEAN. Chairman Reed discussed how EXIM can help finance projects in the region that help foster trade and investment. Since 2010, EXIM has provided more than $41 billion in support of American business in the Indo-Pacific region.

"The Export-Import Bank of the United States looks forward to working with our partners across the Indo-Pacific region to strengthen their economies by connecting them with quality 'Made in the U.S.A.' goods and services, and, when needed, EXIM's loan, guarantee, and insurance programs to make these deals possible," said Chairman Reed. "The Indo-Pacific Business Forum offers a platform for business and government officials to discuss how trade, investment, and economic cooperation can strengthen those ties to create jobs and opportunities for the United States and our partners in the Indo-Pacific region. We share similar objectives of supporting jobs and improving lives."

Chairman Reed then joined Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Robert O'Brien at the 14^th Annual East Asia Summit. In his remarks at the summit (closed press), Ambassador O'Brien highlighted the work that EXIM and other U.S. government agencies are doing to support U.S. trade to and economic development in the region.

National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien and EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed at the 14th Annual East Asia Summit in Bangkok.

Also participating in the East Asia Summit were Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Medvedev, President of South Korea Moon Jae-in, President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte, Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad, Premier of China Li Keqiang, Prime Minister of Thailand Prayuth Chan-ocha, Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison, Sultan of Brunei Hassanal Bolkiah, Prime Minister of Cambodia Hun Sen, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, President of Indonesia Joko Widodo, Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe, and Prime Minister of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith.

Chairman Reed stated, "It was an honor to be with our National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien at the East Asia Summit as he addressed the heads of state and government of the ASEAN member states and other leaders about the economic commitment of the United States to the Indo-Pacific region. Ambassador O'Brien, like President Trump, knows the important role EXIM plays when it comes to both economic security and national security, and EXIM is fully committed, engaged, and ready, as appropriate, to support the sales of more 'Made in the USA' goods and services made by our great American workers to be exported to this important part of our world."

At a press conference following the East Asia Summit, Ambassador O'Brien stated the following:
"We are fully committed to the economic development, the growth, and the prosperity of Asia, particularly of Southeast Asia. Held in parallel to this summit was the Indo-Pacific Business Forum. My colleague Wilbur Ross, the Commerce secretary of the United States, led our delegation along with folks from OPIC [and] Kimberly Reed, the chairman of the EXIM Bank who is here for this press conference. We had a slew of important government leaders, economic leaders who were here for the business forum. And there were also a thousand business executives from the United States and the Indo-Pacific region, from all areas of the Indo-Pacific, here trying to figure out how to grow their businesses and invest and sign the deals. It really was a spectacular event that took place, and, again, it demonstrates the strong economic relationship between the United States and the region here."

While in Bangkok, Chairman Reed also participated in a panel discussion with the Secretarial Businesses Development Mission hosted by Commerce Secretary Ross. The panel included USTDA Director Thomas Hardy; OPIC Executive Vice President David Bohigian; Acting Assistant Treasury Secretary Mitchell Silk; and Patrick Wilson, director of the Commerce Department's Office of Business Liaison, who served as moderator. They were joined by senior leaders representing 16 U.S. businesses and organizations.

Earlier in the week, Chairman Reed met on November 3 with representatives of the Export-Import Bank of Thailand (EXIM Thailand), the counterpart export credit agency to EXIM. Chairman Reed and the EXIM Thailand officials discussed ways to support trade between