ARTICLES

3 Aug 2021

Team Biden: A Southeast Asia Reset

Victor Ha

Compared to China, the Biden Administration has been slow off the blocks in the game of winning friends and influencing people in Southeast Asia. It has its work cut out for it.

Cargo containers stacked at Yantian port

21 Jul 2021

Unpacking China’s Merchandise Trade with ASEAN during the Global Pandemic

Xiaojun Li

While the global merchandise trade shrank by 5.3% as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, bilateral trade between China and ASEAN increased in the meantime by 6.7%, thanks not only to a steady increase in bilateral trade but also to the relative decline of trade between China with its other major trading partners.

Asean Trade ASEAN-China Relations China

7 Jul 2021

Lancang-Mekong Cooperation: Overcoming the Trust Deficit on the Mekong

Richard Grünwald

The Lancang Mekong Cooperation has suffered a deficit of trust following the publication of a study in April 2020 raising concerns over the impact of Chinese mainstream dams on the Mekong’s water flow. To overcome the trust deficit on the Mekong, it is important to depoliticise hydrological science by ensuring compliance with standard research procedures and collaboration among relevant institutions.

ASEAN-China Relations China Japan Mekong River South Korea Thailand

11 Jun 2021

A New Height of ASEAN-China Relations? Not Quite, Not Yet

Hoang Thi Ha

China and ASEAN had a fairly successful meeting in Chongqing recently. But the conclusion that Beijing has orchestrated a win over Washington in Southeast Asia is premature.

ASEAN ASEAN-China Relations South China Sea

Mekong River at Sangkhom district in the northeastern Thai province of Nong Khai

1 Jun 2021

The Mekong River Ecosystem in Crisis: ASEAN Cannot be a Bystander

Hoang Thi Ha|Farah Nadine Seth

Despite being the premier regional organisation in Southeast Asia, ASEAN remains a bystander in the imminent collapse of the Mekong River ecosystem. The successful mainstreaming of transboundary haze pollution in ASEAN’s legal and institutional frameworks are instructive for invigorating ASEAN’s engagement in the Mekong issues.

ASEAN ASEAN-China Relations Climate Change Energy Environment Mekong River

25 May 2021

Fighting Covid-19: China’s Soft Power Opportunities in Mainland Southeast Asia

Chheang Vannarith

In mainland Southeast Asia, the Chinese government’s effective measures to curb the pandemic outbreak at home and the provision of Covid-19 assistance to regional countries have enhanced China’s soft power. Most of the mainland Southeast Asian countries, except Vietnam, have been receptive to China’s Covid-19 diplomacy.

ASEAN ASEAN-China Relations China COVID-19 Southeast Asia Vaccine Diplomacy

10 May 2021

The ASEAN Way: Zen and the Art of Great Power Maintenance

William Choong

Recent official rejections of China’s “nine dash line” claims in the South China Sea by Southeast Asian disputant states are not about closer alignment with the US.

ASEAN ASEAN Neutrality ASEAN-China Relations U.S. Foreign Policy

27 Apr 2021

ASEAN Emergency Summit: In the Hot Seat

Sharon Seah

One can assess ASEAN’s recent emergency meeting in Jakarta in two ways. One scenario is cautiously optimistic; the other would be tantamount to pure fatalism.

ASEAN ASEAN Neutrality ASEAN-China Relations Myanmar Myanmar Politics U.S. Foreign Policy

7 Apr 2021

Facing the Ire of 1.4 Billion Chinese Consumers: Cottoning on to Supply Chain Risks

Xiaojun Li

Chinese consumers’ boycott of Western fashion brands for their position on cotton sourced from Xinjiang is a sequel to a long-running series of actions against foreign companies. Southeast Asian firms should take note, and act accordingly.

ASEAN-China Relations China Human Rights