Kagan said during Donald Trump’s first stint as president, his administration was also very focused on trying to ensure continued peace and prosperity in the region.

While every administration “brings its own style and its own stamp to what it does”, Kagan believes the fundamentals will remain.

“I think you could see that in the previous Trump administration. The fundamentals are that there’s a recognition that US prosperity, security and global standing depend to a very large degree on what happens in the Indo-Pacific.

“And there’s a commitment to ensure continued strong trade, “ he told reporters after attending the US-Malaysia Vice Chancellor Round Table 2024, here.

Kagan was asked to comment on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s hope that the US, via the incoming Trump administration, will reinvigorate its engagement with Southeast Asia when Malaysia assumes the Asean chairmanship next year.

Kagan said Washington’s focus on the Indo-Pacific has been very consistent, saying it went back to the George W Bush administration, before it was continued by the Obama administration and subsequently the Biden administration.

Yesterday, Trump recaptured the White House by securing more than the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the presidency.

Yesterday, Kagan said regardless of who becomes the next US president, Washington’s relations with Putrajaya will remain strong.

He said although there had been times when ties “have been stronger and times a little bit less so”, the underlying fundamentals of the relationship were what mattered, which he was confident would continue.