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US-Asean relations

US-Asean relations
Breaking news and analysis on US-Asean relations, including trade, defence and diplomacy.
Open Questions series

Liu Qian on Chinese innovation, the US rivalry and women holding up half the sky

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Illustration: Victor Sanjinez Garcia

Fuchsia Dunlop tells how she fell for China’s cuisine and names her perfect dish

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

80 years on from WWII, China’s interests lie in peaceful Asia-Pacific: Mitter

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

‘Delusional’: Jeffrey Sachs on why Western hegemony has ended

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Illustration: Henry Wong

Scholar Jing Qian on right-sizing China’s economy in the age of Trump

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

US-China rivalry doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game: Jessica Chen Weiss

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Illustration: Victor Sanjinez

Liu Qian on Chinese innovation, the US rivalry and women holding up half the sky

7
Illustration: Victor Sanjinez Garcia

Fuchsia Dunlop tells how she fell for China’s cuisine and names her perfect dish

videocam
5
Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

80 years on from WWII, China’s interests lie in peaceful Asia-Pacific: Mitter

videocam
18
Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

‘Delusional’: Jeffrey Sachs on why Western hegemony has ended

videocam
93
Illustration: Henry Wong

Scholar Jing Qian on right-sizing China’s economy in the age of Trump

videocam
40
Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

US-China rivalry doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game: Jessica Chen Weiss

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29
Illustration: Victor Sanjinez
MORE FROM THIS SERIES
Representatives of the “Pax Silica” signatories hold signed documents at a summit held in Washington on December 12. Photo: Getty Images/AFP
India

‘Pax Silica’: America’s new AI inner circle and Asia’s chosen few

Japan, South Korea and Singapore made the cut, leaving key partners like India and Vietnam – and even New Zealand – on the sidelines.

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United States

Southeast Asia barely features in America’s new security strategy

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Thailand

Cambodia suspends all border crossings with Thailand amid more clashes

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China trade

Explainer | Tripwire clauses: why is China alarmed by Malaysia’s new trade deal with the US?

Controversial wording seen as a geopolitical trap designed to force neutral countries to uphold Western containment strategies.

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Shipping containers are stacked in April at Port Klang on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Photo: AP
Asean

Opinion | In its year under Malaysia, Asean tried to set systemic reform in motion

Despite grumbles about loss of focus and misgivings about the longevity of new networks, Malaysia, ironically, perhaps didn’t go far enough.

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US-China relations

US lawmakers urge Trump to condemn Myanmar’s China-backed ‘sham’ elections

Call comes after government’s plan to stop legal protections for Myanmar nationals in US, citing elections as proof situation was improving.

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Thailand

Why Trump won’t let Thailand keep tariff, border talks separate

The US president views the Thai-Cambodia ceasefire deal as a ‘diplomatic trophy’ and will use trade leverage to protect it, analysts say.

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US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul (left) during the ceremonial signing of a Thai-Cambodia ceasefire agreement in Kuala Lumpur on October 26. Photo: AFP
Scams and swindles

What US anti-scam ‘strike force’ means for Southeast Asia’s cybercrime fight

Analysts say the US initiative can serve as a coordination blueprint to push back against transnational criminal enterprises.

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US-China trade war

Asean, China, Japan and South Korea hold ‘transformative’ critical minerals opportunity

Director of Asean+3 Macroeconomic Research Office says some Southeast Asian economies have notable reserves.

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Thailand

Trump calls Thailand and Cambodia after new clashes upend his ceasefire deal

The US president co-signed a truce between the two countries, but a landmine blast prompted Thailand to suspend the agreement.

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A convoy of Cambodia’s SH-1 howitzers is seen along a street in Preah Vihear province on November 1. Photo: Agence Kampuchea Press via AFP
Thailand

Exclusive | Thailand’s top diplomat calls for Asean to rethink non-interference principle

In an exclusive interview, Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow argues Asean’s consensus model needs reform amid US-China rivalry.

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Thailand’s Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow speaks on the sidelines of the 47th Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on October 26. Photo: Reuters
Asean

Opinion | How Asean quietly became China’s buffer against US tariffs

China and Asean now have a lawful way to cushion tariffs by shifting where value is added, how it is recorded and which standards to meet.

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Thailand

Trump’s Thailand-Cambodia truce unravels 2 weeks after it was signed

Analysts say the pact the US president helped broker was tenuous from the outset.

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US-China trade war

US ‘knocking on every country’s door’ as it races to secure rare earth supplies

Washington is determined to break China’s rare earths chokehold in case ties with Beijing fray once again, analysts say.

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China has increasingly used its dominance of global rare earth supplies as leverage in its negotiations with the United States amid the trade war. Photo: AFP
Malaysia

Who wins the US-China trade war? Maersk’s mega-bet backs Southeast Asia

The shipping giant sees Southeast Asia as a net beneficiary of Trump’s tariff turmoil.

A computer generated render of Maersk’s new distribution centre in Malaysia’s Selangor state. Image: Cergas Setia Construction
Asean

Opinion | Manila’s biggest challenge as next Asean chair? Staying neutral

The Philippines’ challenge, given its assertive South China Sea policy, is to keep the bloc out of great power politics.

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Vietnam

Avoiding ‘strategic suicide’: Vietnam’s US-Russia-China diplomatic dance

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth’s visit pushed military cooperation, but Vietnam wants to ensure it keeps all its geopolitical options open.

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Cambodia

Cambodia resumes military drills with US to rebalance ties beyond China

The Angkor Sentinel drills signal renewed US interest in the region and allow Cambodia to recalibrate its ties beyond China, analysts say.

The USS Savannah combat ship prepares to dock in Cambodia’s southern port city of Sihanoukville on December 16, 2024, in the first American military port call to one of China’s closest regional allies in eight years. Photo: AFP
China trade

China pushes for trilateral trade pact with Japan, South Korea amid US tension

Divergent interests, new governments and Washington’s influence complicate Beijing’s efforts to forge deeper economic ties with Japan and South Korea.

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US-China relations

China, US to revive military channels but more steps deemed essential for trust

US and China agree to ‘set up military-to-military channels to deconflict and de-escalate any problems that arise’, Hegseth says in post.

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Cambodia

US, Cambodia rekindle military ties after Trump’s peace deal

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the return of the Angkor Sentinel drills, paused in 2017, after meeting his Cambodian counterpart.

Cambodian soldiers stand atop a tank loaded on a truck along a street in Preah Vihear province on Sunday. Photo: Agence Kampuchea Press/AFP
Rare earths

America’s ‘concerning’ lust for rare earths rocks Southeast Asia

Hastily signed rare earths pacts with Thailand and Malaysia have raised alarm about the environmental and economic fallout.

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Thai demonstrators step on a mock memorandum of understanding during a protest outside the US embassy in Bangkok on Thursday against a Thai-US agreement on rare earth cooperation. Photo: EPA
United States

Outside In | Trump’s unilateralism in Asia makes ‘world minus one’ clear

While the US president’s trip to the region coincided with multilateral summits, he was clearly more interested in bilateral deals.

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Asean

Opinion | Gone are the days of unlimited US power in Southeast Asia

Trump’s attendance at the Asean summit comes as members assert their agency and no longer look to Washington for unrivalled support.

Asean

Did Asean members get short-changed by Trump on ‘strings attached’ trade deals?

The individual deals signed by Trump with Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam may lead to long-term economic costs, analysts say.

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US President Donald Trump and Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim hold signed documents during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Asean summit in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. Photo: AFP
Asean

Editorial | Caught between China and the US, Asean could act as a go-between

The East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur highlighted the challenging position Southeast Asian nations find themselves in as superpower rivalry intensifies.

A screen focuses on Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at the 20th East Asia Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre in Malaysia, on October 27. Photo: EPA
Malaysia

Malaysia’s Anwar turns charm and wit into diplomatic wins for Asean

Anwar and Trump’s personal chemistry paid dividends for an Asean summit often criticised as flat and lacking urgency, observers say.

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US-China trade war

US signs rare earth MOUs with Malaysia, Thailand. Can it hedge against China?

Deals with Malaysia and Thailand may one day give Washington leverage in negotiations with Beijing, according to analysts.

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