This year marks one of the most important years for ASEAN’s geopolitical landscape. During the plenary session of the 34th ASEAN Summit in June, all member states agreed to adopt the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific. The brief five-page document emphasised the ASEAN led mechanism in dealing with strategic issues in the Indo-Pacific region.

When the Cold War ended, many pundits anticipated a new era in which geo-economics would determine geopolitics. As economic integration progressed, they predicted, the rules-based order would take root globally. Countries would comply with international law or incur high costs.Today, such optimism looks more than a little naive.

“The security development is also affected by the great power; the South China Sea and Korean Peninsula conflict will affect the security and stability in the region.” These were the words of Indonesian Defence minister Prabowo Subianto at the 6th Annual Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus, in Bangkok, Thailand.The newly elected Indonesian Defence Minister mentioned that the ongoing South China Sea conflict remains one of the biggest threats to Indonesia and the region.

It is a tradition for ASEAN’s 10 members to take turns chairing the regional bloc in alphabetical order, and come 1 January, 2020, Vietnam will formally take over from Thailand fully aware of the responsibilities it will have to shoulder.Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha proudly handed a gavel, the symbol of ASEAN’s leadership, to a smiling Vietnamese Prime Minister, Nguyen Xuan Phuc at the closing of the 35th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok on Monday – and the pressure is now on one of Asia’s fa

Martial-arts film star Jackie Chan’s planned visit to Vietnam for a charity has been cancelled following an online backlash related to Beijing’s expansive claims in the disputed South China Sea.The Hong Kong-born actor was set to visit Hanoi on 10 November to support Operation Smile, a charity that gives free surgery to children with facial disfigurements.But the plans were scrapped after thousands of angry Facebook users flooded the charity’s official page when his visit was announced last w

Beijing said Sunday it is "ready to work" with Southeast Asian nations on a code of conduct in the flashpoint South China Sea, where it is accused of building up military installations and bullying fellow claimants.China claims most of the resource-rich waterway, a major global shipping route that has long been a source of tension in the region.For years, the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been locked in talks for a code of conduct for the sea, where Ch

Vietnam’s decision to ban the animated film Abominable earlier this month is just the latest in a string of pushbacks against China’s infamous nine-dash line.Vietnam’s censors were forced to apologise after the Hollywood film, which was jointly produced by a Chinese studio, was screened across Vietnam’s cinemas for a week despite a scene which showed the disputed nine-dash line – China’s depiction of its territorial delineation in the South China Sea.China claims nearly 80 percent of the reso

The recent storm in Vietnam and the Philippines over a controversial cartoon is a prime example of how China’s intricately-woven influence in Hollywood is making its mark in Southeast Asia.Hollywood films are hugely popular across the world, and realising their potential, China has been actively buying media assets in the United States (US) since 2012 as its bids to exert its soft power through the entertainment industry.China is also the second largest film market in the world, and Hollywood

Vietnam has pulled the animated film "Abominable" from theatres over a scene featuring a map of the South China Sea showing Beijing's claims in the flashpoint waterway, cinemas and state media reported Monday.China has long used its so-called nine-dash line to justify its jurisdiction over most of the resource-rich sea, often to the displeasure of Hanoi, which also claims parts of the waterway.The U-shaped line appears on a map of the South China Sea in a scene in the film – re

Beijing told visiting Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte that its position on the South China Sea was not up for negotiation, a spokesman for the leader said Friday.China claims most of the contested sea, including waters close to Philippine shores, and has rejected a United Nations (UN)-backed international tribunal ruling that said its assertion to the Sea is without legal basis.Duterte is under growing pressure at home to challenge China – after largely setting aside the standoff for yea