After India, Obama's 10-day tour will continue in Indonesia, South Korea and Japan. His visit shows a renewed interest by the US in the region.

Exactly one year after his first trip, US President Barack Obama started his second whirlwind tour of Asia on Friday.

His first leg is a three-day visit to India, where expectations are high for the biggest and longest ever visit by a US president.

But Obama will not visit India's neighbor Pakistan this time - a move interpreted by the Pakistani media as "a deliberate snub".

Obama's second stop will be Indonesia, a nostalgic trip which was called off twice earlier this year.

Obama is expected to announce a new "comprehensive partnership" with the world's most populous Muslim country.

Then he will head to the G20 Summit in Seoul, South Korea. But ahead of the meeting, talks between US and South Korean officials are already underway. Both countries are trying to reach a deal to renew the free trade agreement signed in 2007.

Obama's final stop will be the APEC Summit in Japan. During his visit to the country last year, Obama famously declared himself America's first "Pacific president".

This trip is viewed as Washington's restatement of a "we're back" policy.

But as Obama steps up efforts to engage with Asia, there are growing concerns over America's motives. Analysts fear that Washington's increasing involvement could complicate the situation in Asia.

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