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Jakarta. As the American president received a rousing welcome in Jakarta this week on a trip to strengthen bilateral ties, senior Chinese officials quietly made investment promises as Beijing and Washington maneuvered for influence in Asia.

In the past few days — even before US President Barack Obama’s visit — a delegation led by Wu Bangguo, head of China’s National People’s Congress, paid calls on senior state officials.

On Monday, the delegation pledged to invest $6.6 billion in various Indonesian infrastructure and development projects after a series of talks.

On Wednesday, Wu met with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to discuss how to boost foreign investment in Indonesia to $50 billion by 2014.

Teuku Faizasyah, presidential spokesman for international affairs, said Wu also promised to provide 10 million yuan ($1.5 million) for disaster relief, in addition to other donations for food and medical assistance.

The power play was unmistakable. Obama grabbed headlines and formalized a Comprehensive Partnership with Indonesia, while China made deals in the same vein.

Analysts say Obama’s ongoing tour of Asia should be seen in light of China’s growing power, which highlights the need for the United States to enhance ties in the region, including India and Indonesia — both emerging economies.

At a joint press conference with Yudhoyono on Tuesday, however, Obama said the United States had no intention of “containing” China’s rising influence.

“We think China being prosperous and secure is a positive,” Obama said. “And we’re not interested in containing that process.”

However, Bantarto Bandoro, a foreign affairs expert from University of Indonesia, begged to differ. “America’s interest in Indonesia is to deter, if not end, China’s rising influence in the region,” he said.

Bantarto said the United States recognized that forming an alliance with countries like India and Indonesia, two of the largest democracies in Asia, could provoke China and disturb regional stability.

“Even if it is just a partnership, it is still an indirect way to counter China’s influence, and the United States is looking for many Asian countries to partner with,” Bantarto said.

For instance, he said, Obama spent three days in India, where he expressed support for the country’s bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, of which China has been a member for decades.

“This support for India is part of that effort to balance China,” the analyst said.

The United States has also expressed interest in helping Asean defuse tensions over China’s aggressive stance on maritime disputes in the South China Sea, which has alarmed a number of Southeast Asian countries.

Obama said during Tuesday’s press conference that his country wanted to ensure that South China Sea territorial conflicts could be “resolved in a peaceful fashion.”

Experts say America has been trying to repair ties in Asia in recent years after neglecting the region for almost a decade.

“The United States’ lack of interest in Southeast Asia during much of the 2000s — though that is changing — opened the door for China,” said Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow at the US Council on Foreign Relations.

But Indonesian leaders have cautioned against taking sides in the US-China power struggle.

“I will not adopt a theory where one power counterbalances another,” Yudhoyono said on Tuesday. “But I perceive that there must be a dynamic equilibrium” among all players.”

“If something bad happens between these two Group of 20 countries, the impact would be expansive, not only in Asia but in the world,” the president said.