Category: ASEAN
Japan, China Both Court ASEAN Countries as Part of Burgeoning Battle for Influence in Southeast Asia
Both Japan and China held a series of events with senior leaders from the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in recent days as part of a ramped-up effort to increase their respective influence in Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Defense Chiefs Expand Talks to China, U.S., India
ASEAN defense ministers gathering in Jakarta expanded talks on Thursday to include defense chiefs from China, the U.S., Japan, and India. U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin attended but did not meet with a Chinese counterpart. ...
South China Sea Crisis and ASEAN’s Quiet Diplomacy
At the maritime symposium this week in Hainan, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi warned against a “bloc confrontation” approach to solving disputes, alluding to the Philippines, the United States, and Japan’s growing complaints about the brewing tension in the South China Sea. On October 22, two Chinese ...
Days After Meeting Biden, Vietnam PM Calls for Closer Ties With China
Vietnam's legendary skills in managing the burgeoning Great Power rivalry between the U.S. and China were on full display this weekend when, just days after hosting President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính headed across the border for talks with his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang.
South China Sea, Infrastructure Top Agenda in China-Malayasia PM Talks
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim met with his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang on Sunday on the sides of the 20th China-ASEAN Expo in the southern Chinese city of Nanning. The two PMs addressed the politically sensitive issue of competing territorial claims ...
ASEAN Knocks On The West’s Doors While Keeping China Close Amid Territorial Flare-Ups
This week’s summit in Jakarta saw ASEAN countries again knocking on the West’s door to ask for far more concrete support for their future growth. At the same time, the bloc seemed united in refraining from ruffling China’s feathers too much on the subject of the South ...
ASEAN Talks with Major Powers Navigate Numerous Controversies
China’s Premier Li Qiang warned against a ‘new cold war’ as the ASEAN summit moved on to a series of talks between the bloc and its partners. Calling for ways to "appropriately handle differences and disputes," Li said: "At present, it is ...
Premier Li Qiang Tries to Reassure China’s Southeast Asian Neighbors in ASEAN Address
Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang sought to soothe tensions with its neighbors in Southeast Asia during his keynote address on Wednesday at the ASEAN leaders summit in Jakarta. Li did not specifically reference the recent confrontations with the Philippines in the ...
Q&A: ASEAN Is Showing Teeth To Myanmar
On the first day of the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, the group leaders released a review on the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC), which was put out in 2021 to help resolve the crisis in Myanmar. The document ...
ASEAN Under Pressure at Start of Leaders’ Summit
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations leaders’ summit kicks off in Jakarta on Tuesday as it fights for its relevance and unity amid mounting geopolitical tensions. Increasing jockeying between China and the United States in the South China Sea has piled pressure ...
ASEAN’s Hyper-Focus On Economic Growth Won’t Make Geopolitical Tensions Go Away
Indonesia’s ASEAN Chairmanship this year leans heavily towards spurring economic growth, believing that the focus on the more “neutral” subject would unite the group. In these economic efforts, ASEAN has been consistent in its messaging about working with all partners, because ...
TRANSLATION: Risks and Benefits if Indonesia Aligns With BRICS
The following is a summary translation of an article published in Bahasa on the Indonesian news website Tirto.id, written by reporter Andrian Pratama Taher, that combines several Indonesian analysts’ perspectives on the potential benefits and risks of Indonesia joining BRICS. ...