In November of last year, President Obama showed up at the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) where he announced a shift in US foreign policy, which he refered to as the Asian Pivot. Asia is of vital strategic and economic importance to the US and, according to the President, deserved to be the United State's number one priority. Later, Secretary of Defense, Panetta, said that by 2020, 60% of our naval forces would be deployed in the Pacific leaving 40% for the Atlantic and Mediterranean.
