SCOTT MORRISON IS ATTENDING THE EAST ASIA SUMMIT
KEY FACTS:
* Prime Minister Scott Morrison will attend the East Asia Summit in Singapore on November 16.
* The summit brings together 18 regional leaders for talks on the key political, economic and security challenges facing the Indo-Pacific.
* It is centred around the 10 member nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
* The summit includes eight of Australia's top 10 trading partners.
* The EAS membership represents more than half of the world's population and 58 per cent of global growth.
KEY PLAYERS:
* US Vice President Mike Pence
* Chinese Premier Li Keqiang
* Russian President Vladimir Putin
* Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
* Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
* Indonesian President Joko Widodo
* Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
* New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
KEY ISSUES:
* Escalating trade tensions between the US and China.
* Progress on a 16-country free trade deal known as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
* Chinese foreign investment and development throughout the Indo-Pacific.
* Terrorism, radicalisation and foreign fighters returning from the Middle East.
* Violence in Myanmar and the Rohingya refugee crisis
* Disputes in the South China Sea.
* Strategic and military competition between the US and China.
* Australia's defence spending and close military links with the US.
