WASHINGTON (AP) — Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, will become the most high-profile U.S. official to visit Samoa next week as the Biden administration ramps up outreach to Pacific island nations.
Emhoff will meet with government officials, community leaders and women entrepreneurs during her July 23-24 visit to Samoa’s capital, Apia. Its communications director, Liza Acevedo, said he would be the first White House director to visit the country. His visit comes as the United States aims to deepen diplomatic and economic ties with Samoa and other countries in the region.
The renewed focus on the Pacific Islands is part of a years-long strategic shift in U.S. attention to the region. It aims in part to counter China’s efforts to dramatically expand its military, economic and diplomatic influence across the Pacific.
Emhoff will travel to Samoa after leading the official United States delegation to the opening of the Women’s World Cup in Auckland, New Zealand. The State Department announced that Samoa would soon receive a dedicated ambassador to the island, among other diplomatic expansions to the region.
Acevedo said Emhoff’s visit will “underscore America’s strong relationship with Samoa and America’s commitment to the Pacific Islands.”
“The second gentleman will highlight our work together to address the climate crisis, improve disaster preparedness, promote sustainable and inclusive economic development, and invest in women’s economic empowerment,” Acevedo said.
Earlier this year, the Peace Corps returned to Samoa for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the United States opened its second American Corner in the country, which provides the only free internet on the island of Savaiʻi. The US Coast Guard is also helping Samoa patrol its exclusive economic zone and deepen ties with the country’s maritime and fisheries agencies.
President Joe Biden was due to be the first US president to visit Papua New Guinea earlier this year, but he had to cancel the stop to return to Washington for negotiations with Congress on raising the US debt ceiling.