The US official had an informal meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, a high-level security summit taking place in Singapore from June 10-12.
According to a release from Singapore's Ministry of Defence (Mindef), Austin said the US will continue to deepen cooperation with ASEAN, particularly in the area of maritime security.
It will also play a strong role in the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+), an annual forum of the regional bloc and its eight partner countries.
The Southeast Asian defence ministers, except for Myanmar's, who is not attending the meeting - welcomed the US' continued engagement of the region, said Mindef.
Singapore's Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen also reaffirmed the principles that underpin the strong US-ASEAN relationship, and showed his country’s aspiration to enhance cooperation with the US to tackle transnational security challenges./.