Over the past two decades, since the ASEAN Economic Community was envisioned, ASEAN has benefited from an increasingly open global economy. Its strategy of remaining open to all major economies, attracting investment, integrating into global supply chains and avoiding choosing sides has served the region well, but this model is now under pressure. The intensifying US-China strategic rivalry and tariff wars, export controls and competition over semiconductors and critical minerals are reshaping the global economic landscape.
Category Archives: ASEANFocus
ASEAN-EU at 50: Turning Goodwill into Strategic Tech Cooperation
Matej Šimalčík and Filip Šebok argue that as the international order fragments, deeper ASEAN-EU cooperation in critical technologies can turn political goodwill into strategic capital. This can be done by simultaneously advancing mutual economic development and reducing both sides’ external dependencies.
Three Provisions Towards Greater Social Media Platform Transparency in ASEAN
Amirul Adli discusses how ASEAN can work with social media platforms to improve internet safety through greater transparency.
After the Gulf Crisis: Rethinking ASEAN Energy Security through Regional Grid Governance
Kaho Yu and Jinseok Sung argue that ASEAN’s energy security is moving beyond oil and gas, as deeper power-grid integration creates new geopolitical, climate, supply-chain and cybersecurity risks that will require stronger regional resilience.
How Do ASEAN Countries Fare in Managing Global Economic Shocks?
Geopolitical conflict, energy disruptions and shifting global supply chains are testing Southeast Asia’s economic resilience. ASEANFocus+ asked regional experts how individual countries are responding and whether ASEAN has the tools to collectively manage the next shock. Their insights highlight the different challenges facing the region, as well as the need for stronger regional coordination, deeper market integration and greater resilience across energy, trade, food and financial systems.
The 2016 South China Sea Award and the Future of a Legally Binding Code of Conduct
Joanne Lin and Huynh Trung Dung examine what the continuing legal divergence surrounding the recognition of 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award means for ASEAN and China’s pursuit of a legally binding Code of Conduct.
ASEAN’s Convening Power Meets Its Delivery Test: Lessons From the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
Huynh Trung Dung, Joanne Lin and Kristina Fong examine whether ASEAN can convert its convening power and shared commitments into tangible regional outcomes.
Small States, Big Stakes: ASEAN’s Narrowing Space for Collective Agency
Denis Hew examines how geopolitical rivalry and economic coercion are reshaping the Indo-Pacific, arguing that ASEAN must deepen regional integration and strengthen its institutions to preserve its collective agency.
Türkiye and ASEAN: Turning a Side Story into a Strategy
In an era of geopolitical uncertainty, Mehmet Enes Beşer argues that Türkiye and ASEAN should move beyond purely trade-based engagements towards a strategic economic partnership, with deeper cooperation in supply chains, energy, the digital economy, industry and the halal sector.
No Longer Poor: Can Laos be Clean, Green and Great?
Anoulak Kittikhoun argues that as Laos prepares to graduate from the United Nations’ least developed country category, the bigger challenge is no longer escaping poverty but building a future defined by clean space and green growth.