US President Barack Obama begins a four-day, three-nation trip - Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia - on Saturday.

During his trip, Obama is expected to refrain from using the nasty campaign rhetoric attacking China that he and his Republican opponent Mitt Romney engaged in during their presidential election campaigns in the United States.

But he should also avoid using the trip as an opportunity to fan the flames of the territorial disputes that have flared up between China and some of its neighbors since the US decided to "return to Asia".