D onald Trump’s comeback is now certain, after he decisively won re-election to the White House, but there is growing uncertainty over how his second-term administration will deal with the Asia-Pacific—a region of increasing strategic relevance and home to a number of international economic and security concerns for the U.S.

This week’s South Asia Brief examines the fallout of former U.S. President Donald Trump’s reelection for the region. Expectations are high for significant changes in U.S. foreign policy, but in South Asia we can expect considerable continuity from Washington.

During his campaign, President-elect Trump pledged to decrease military involvement overseas and upend what he described as unfair trade practices.

Shortly after his inauguration in 2017, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal involving many Asian states, signaling his dislike of multilateralism. As President, Trump did not regularly show up at regional summits.

Southeast Asian leaders are adept at dealing with President-elect Trump’s transactional style of diplomacy, but an escalating U.S.-China conflict would severely harm the region.