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Vanessa Cai

A prominent Chinese political scientist has cautioned Southeast Asian countries against leveraging China-US tensions for short-term benefits, saying this strategy could backfire.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia on Friday, Zheng Yongnian, dean of the school of public policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, said that in the context of South China Sea sovereignty disputes, the key challenge lay in how countries interpreted the China-US rivalry.
“Many countries believe that China and the US are inevitably heading towards confrontation, perhaps even a direct conflict, so they try to leverage the tensions between China and the US for their own benefit,” he said.
“I think this is understandable. However, this approach certainly has its limits – if it exceeds those limits, the country itself will inevitably become a victim.”
Zheng said that nations in the region “should not assume that the US will back them or that they can leverage China-US tensions to advance their own interests”.
Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) face a precarious balancing act between the US and China, the bloc’s largest trading partner. Meanwhile, both Beijing and Washington have ramped up their naval presence in the South China Sea over the past years.


China claims most of the maritime features and rocks in the South China Sea and their adjacent waters, leading to persistent territorial disputes with Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei. Tensions between Beijing and Manila have escalated sharply in recent years, sometimes resulting in clashes.
To counter China’s claims, the US has stepped up defence cooperation and conducted regular naval operations with its long-time treaty ally the Philippines, maintaining a strong presence in the area.
Manila, which took over the rotating Asean chair on January 1, is pushing to seal a legally binding code of conduct for the South China Sea.
Zheng noted that many countries assumed that if a conflict arose between China and the Philippines, the US would definitely side with Manila. However, he said that was not guaranteed.
“It is possible to navigate among major powers, but it requires a high level of finesse. Without that, you risk getting caught up and harming yourself,” he said.
Other speakers on the panel said lessons should be learned from the turmoil in the Middle East, citing disruptions to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has blocked in retaliation for strikes by the US and Israel.
Liu Zhenmin, China’s envoy for climate change, told the panel that safeguarding the openness and security of sea lanes in the South China Sea was important.
“The South China Sea – including the Strait of Malacca and the Singapore Strait – is a vital maritime corridor for East Asia, essential to the economic development and daily lives of its people,” said Liu, who was responsible for South China Sea affairs as vice-minister for foreign affairs before taking a senior United Nations role in 2017.
“Coastal states must strengthen cooperation to ensure the continued openness and security of these shipping routes.”
In his remarks, Zheng also said he saw “significant space for compromise” between Beijing and Washington in the Asia-Pacific.
He said that as long as Beijing’s sovereignty claims in the South China Sea went unharmed, the two sides could reconcile their issues.
“We hope the US remains in the western Pacific playing a constructive role rather than a destructive one,” he added.
“I suggest that relevant authorities consider signing a long-term agreement with the US to encourage its continued presence in the Pacific.
“Once we complete our island and reef construction, these could be opened as an international public good. Once the Taiwan issue is resolved, we could even welcome US aircraft carriers visiting Taiwan.”


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Chinese political scientist Zheng Yongnian cautions that while it is possible for smaller countries to navigate among major powers, “it requires a high level of finesse”. Photo: VCG via Getty Images

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Chinese political scientist says Southeast Asian nations ‘should not assume that the US will back them’ and that strategy could backfire


Chinese political scientist says Southeast Asian nations ‘should not assume that the US will back them’ and that strategy could backfire.


Asean countries warned against exploiting US-China tensions for short-term gain

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Chinese political scientist says Southeast Asian nations ‘should not assume that the US will back them’ and that strategy could backfire

Chinese political scientist says Southeast Asian nations ‘should not assume that the US will back them’ and that strategy could backfire