As the world becomes more multipolar, many countries are likely to prefer flexible alignments over fixed alliances, creating a far more complex web of relationships. This era of coalitions poses a particular challenge for Southeast Asian states, which have heretofore sought to avoid such alignments to maintain ASEAN unity and centrality.
Author Archives: blackbox
Tools for Planning and Mapping a Food-Secure Malaysia
Malaysia has developed comprehensive agriculture and food security policies to respond to exceptionally high inflation since 2020. However, comprehensive tools are also required to successfully translate aspiration into action.
Southeast Asians Mull Over a Taiwan Conflict: Big Concerns But Limited Choices
In the event of hostilities in the Taiwan Strait, Southeast Asian countries will face a difficult dilemma. Their latitude for manoeuvre will be limited, particularly as the Philippines, a key ASEAN member and a U.S. treaty ally, prepares to provide base access to the United States in such a contingency.
Imagining Marcos Jr. as the “Strong Leader” in an Age of Digital Disinformation
Digital disinformation has been menacingly deployed to distort historical narratives about the Philippines’ Martial Law period in the 1970s and early 1980s. This tactic, bolstered by social media technologies, has masterfully resonated with the yearning for a “strong leader” who is independent of the country’s elites and able to discipline the nation’s masses.
Southeast Asian Economies: Out of the Storm, Clouds on the Horizon
The Southeast Asian economy is looking up, after absorbing the blow of several downside risks in 2022. Continued growth in 2023 will depend on China’s recovery, the management of the fallout from the U.S.-China trade war and the war in Ukraine.
Rebuilding Social Cohesion for Myanmar’s Post-Conflict Future
Two years after the February 2021 coup in Myanmar, societal ruptures amidst a civil war demand far-sighted visions for a post-conflict future led by the people.
Fragmented Digital Regulations are Constraining ASEAN’s Digital Economy
The ASEAN digital economy is running sub-optimally due to fragmented regulatory frameworks. Increased coherence will enable the region’s firms to break out of their local markets and raise revenues from the expansion of consumer markets.
Indonesia Takes the Lead on Myanmar: The Clock is Ticking
Southeast Asians are looking to ASEAN’s titular head Indonesia to take the lead to resolve the political crisis in Myanmar. But Jakarta’s first steps as ASEAN Chair have left something to be desired.
BrahMos Supersonic Missiles: Poised to Buoy New Delhi’s Arms Exports?
India is not a major arms exporter, something that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is keen to change. But there is one “Made in India” weapons system that half a dozen Southeast Asian countries seem most eager to buy: the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.
India and Multi-Alignment: Having One’s Cake and Eating It Too
The evolution of India’s foreign policy from non-alignment to multi-alignment has yielded dividends. The question is whether New Delhi can continue to be in such an enviable position.