Showing 1 - 10 of 51
Trump ready with Asean policy 2.0
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 21/01/2025
» Last week's Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing for Senator Marco Rubio was very insightful, especially regarding comments related to US-Asean relations. Mr Rubio demonstrated knowledge about Asean and the need for flexibility in engaging with the countries in the region. His comments have also calmed surging concerns over a potential tariff hike under the Trump administration. Certainly, he is expected to be confirmed and replace Antony Blinken as Secretary of State.
US looks to deepen Asean partnership
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 08/10/2024
» Annual meetings between Asean leaders and major powers from both the West and East have made Asean an important strategic partner. The upcoming Asean-related summits in Vientiane this week are no different. After the pandemic, Asean has become more prominent, though sometimes passive, in the region. By not fully taking sides in the East-West divide, Asean keeps its influence and room to handle the complex global security issues.
Asean's united front amid global shifts
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 30/07/2024
» This year's Asean Ministerial Meeting (AMM) was notable for the unity of its members, as the bloc has faced increased pressure to align with major powers. Kudos to the humble Asean chair, Deputy Prime Minister Saleumxay Kommasith, also Laos' Minister of Foreign Affairs, who emphasised at the annual meeting's outset that amid rapid and complex geopolitical and geo-economic changes, Asean must remain united and enhance its centrality.
Nato's Washington summit deepens spat with China
News, Peter Apps, Published on 16/07/2024
» During Nato's 75th anniversary summit held in Washington last week, China's defence ministry made a surprise announcement.
How Sino-American rivalry reshapes world order
Oped, William R Rhodes & Stuart PM Mackintosh, Published on 12/06/2024
» Tensions between the United States and China continue to flare, even as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and several other senior US officials visit the country for talks. The two sides may disagree on most things, but maintaining dialogue is an essential part of geopolitics. The breakdown in communication last year, following visits to Taiwan by prominent American politicians and the US downing of a Chinese spy balloon, was dangerous and destabilising, because when adversaries do not engage, misperceptions -- and the risk of a clash -- mount.
For China, Europe visit part of a wider confrontation
News, Peter Apps, Published on 14/05/2024
» In the Serbian village of Budjanovci outside Belgrade, people have talked for years about the Chinese teams that descended on the area following the shooting down of a US F-117 stealth fighter in March 1999, offering to buy pieces of wreckage taken by villagers as souvenirs.
Blinken's diplomatic dance in China
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 01/05/2024
» US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited China for whirlwind discussions with the People's Republic political grandees in Shanghai and Beijing with the hope of "stabilising the relationship" between both countries. So into the Beijing/Washington political turbulence, Mr Blinken flew to smooth the Sino-American political rivalry, especially over China's military assertiveness towards the South China Sea, Taiwan, the Ukraine war, and naturally two-way trade.
Haiti's ticking humanitarian timebomb
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 21/03/2024
» As waves of gang violence engulf an already poor and destitute land through a reckless orgy of shootings and looting, the Caribbean Island of Haiti equally faces a widening domestic humanitarian crisis along with a ticking migrant exodus.
War starts when deterrence falls short
Oped, Kantathi Suphamongkhon, Published on 02/03/2024
» On Feb 24, 2022, when I heard that Russia had invaded Ukraine, calling it a "special military operation", I thought that the war would not last beyond a month.
Myanmar eyes return to Asean fold
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 13/02/2024
» To understand the current game plan of Myanmar's military regime, it is perhaps a good time to remind ourselves of the letter written by former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen to Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on Aug 19, 2022. The rather blunt personal letter urged the junta leader to implement the Five-Point Consensus (5PC), saying that if he fails to do so, his Asean colleagues might ban Myanmar from all meetings and recognise the National Unity Government (NUG). In short, Asean would give the seat to the NUG. The letter angered the general, and Hun Sen's practical advice was ignored, including his call for amnesty for four activists who had been sentenced to death. For the past three years, Myanmar's seat at Asean's high-level meetings has been left vacant. Then, on Feb 29, the seat was occupied temporarily.