After his party 's losses in the midterm elections , President Barack Obama will wade into a mass of foreign policy challenges during his trip to Asia this week . Obama made America 's pivot to Asia a centerpiece of his foreign policy architecture . But some commentators say the President , beset by crises elsewhere , has failed to put words into action . `` The Asia pivot remains more rhetoric than reality , '' CNN 's Fareed Zakaria said . `` Having promised a larger U.S. military presence in the Philippines , Singapore and Australia , there is little evidence of any of this on the ground . '' Obama arrived Monday in Beijing , where the greater U.S. focus on Asia is viewed with deep suspicion . `` Two prevailing sentiments -- perceived U.S.-led containment of China and the threat posed to America by China 's growing economic and military strength -- have set the two major powers on a confrontational course , '' said Cheng Li , a senior foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution . Obama is in Beijing for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ( APEC ) meetings , but he will also hold direct meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping , where sensitive issues like cybersecurity will be on the agenda . `` To put this crucial bilateral relationship back on track , President Obama and President Xi must use the summit in Beijing to deepen mutual understanding and publicly challenge these misperceptions , '' Li said in comments published by Brookings . `` The United States welcomes the rise of a prosperous , peaceful and stable China , '' Obama said in a speech Monday at the APEC CEO Summit . He announced that the U.S. and China have agreed to extend the maximum length of tourist , business and student visas for each others ' citizens . While in Beijing , Obama also spoke about North Korea 's release of American detainees Kenneth Bae and Matthew Todd Miller over the weekend . He said the release did not involve high-level talks on any pressing issues between North Korea and the United States . ISIS fight in new phase , Obama says . Myanmar reforms 'sliding backwards ' After China , Obama will travel to Myanmar , a country where , two years ago , he became the first sitting U.S. President to visit . There was much fanfare then about the introduction of political reforms after decades of oppressive military rule . The opening up of Myanmar , also known as Burma , became held up as a positive example of U.S. engagement in Asia . But concerns are now rife about the halting progress of those changes and the plight of the Muslim minority group , the Rohingya . `` Since the high point of Myanmar 's reform process in 2012 and early 2013 , the country 's political opening has stalled and , in my opinion , slid backwards , '' wrote Joshua Kurlantzick , a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations . He said Obama , who will be attending regional summits in the country , should pressure the Myanmar government to push ahead with political changes and rethink its `` racist '' plan for the Rohingya . But a senior U.S. official cautioned not to expect any major leaps forward any time soon . `` I do n't think we 're going to see breakthroughs in the short term , '' Tom Malinowski , the U.S. assistant secretary of state for human rights and labor , told CNN 's Christiane Amanpour last week . `` Burma was an opening to a breakthrough and it 's one that we always knew would take years to move from its starting point to its finishing point . '' Will Obama and Putin meet ? The last country on Obama 's itinerary is Australia , where the G-20 summit will take place in Brisbane . He plans to deliver `` a very significant policy address discussing U.S. leadership in the Asia Pacific , '' as well as holding a trilateral meeting with the Australian and Japanese prime ministers , Evan Medeiros , senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council , said Friday . But much attention will be focused on how Obama will navigate the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin , who has angered Western leaders with his aggressive actions in Ukraine . They already suspended Russia from the G8 , the group of leading industrialized nations , earlier this year . But Putin will be in Brisbane for the G-20 , and could even bump into Obama earlier in the week at the APEC meetings in Beijing . U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice did n't rule out the possibility of an encounter in Brisbane . `` I imagine , as in the past , that there will be an opportunity for the G-20 leaders to engage informally on the margins , '' she said at a news briefing Friday . `` There 's no formal bilateral meeting scheduled or planned , but I would n't be at all surprised if they had some informal communication . '' The two leaders had a brief conversation about the Ukraine crisis on the sidelines of the D-Day commemorations in France in June .
Vladimir Putin : Beijing release of Americans did n't involve major talks on pressing issues . The U.S. `` welcomes the rise of a prosperous , peaceful and stable China , '' Obama says . He announces an agreement with Myanmar to extend the maximum length of visas . The Beijing President will visit Myanmar and Australia early 2013 .