Posted date: September 16, 2022
On Thursday 15 September 2022, the CICP Executive Director, Amb. Pou Sothirak was invited to be a Keynote Speaker at the sharing session event under the theme “Navigating ASEAN Centrality Through the Increasing Rivalry Between the US and China”, an event organized by the Asia Forum, in collaboration with the Southeast Asia Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence, Victoria University of Wellington, and the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs.
Key takeaways from his talk include:
- ASEAN must remind itself to remain united, vigilance, creative, and bold or else suffer outside powers inference that can undermine “ASEAN Centrality” affecting ASEAN’s traditional modus operandi and its fundamental cohesion.
- The ASEAN Way in creating norms which have been embedded in an open, inclusive regional architecture, creating a multi-layered structure of institutional frameworks with ASEAN at the center, must not constrain ASEAN space for action to achieve desirable results.
- ASEAN’s principle of neutrality, non-interference and the ASEAN Way must not come at the expense of ASEAN relevance for action to workout suitable and necessary arrangements that can lead to the reduction of tensions caused by big power competition.
- To prevent any unwarranted implications created by US and China rivalry, ASEAN Centrality must forge ahead beyond the consensual way and non-substantive reaction in dealing today’s pressing challenges, ranging from traditional and non-traditional threats which are persistently testing ASEAN relevance.
- ASEAN need to exhibit bolder leadership and reinvigorate its centrality to engage both powers smartly but prudently by not circumventing one power against the other, more importantly avoid getting entwine in the manner through which the US and China compete with each other.
- For the COC, ASEAN and China need to focus on resolving challenges for biding and credible code more resolutely.
- ASEAN must rely on multilateral mechanism to constrain or help manage US and China confrontational behaviors.
- ASEAN should continue to engage the US and China through existing ASEAN frameworks, even if there are limitations of what can be accomplished.
- While engaging China, ASEAN should capitalize on its strategic role and social norms to encourage China to rise peacefully.
- With the US, ASEAN should convince Washington that the bloc is at the core of US strategic and economic interests and welcome the US presence to the region.
