June 13, 2019
U.S. eyes Southeast Asia ties to check China ambitions
For the United States, competing with China must now be our national priority, as indicated in multiple US high-level documents. But the US is not competing for its own sake.
Rather, the US is seeking to achieve specific goals that are of the utmost importance for Southeast Asia.
The US has a deep and abiding interest in the region’s fate. This is because the Indo-Pacific is more and more the world’s most important region, primarily because of the size and dynamism of its economy.
Any state that can set the terms of trade and write the rules of the road for the Indo-Pacific will do so for the world.
It is increasingly evident in Washington that China seeks to do just this by establishing its hegemony over the Indo-Pacific.
So empowered, Beijing would be able to shape trade and regional order to favour its prosperity, security, and political interests.
China does not seek to conquer territory for its own sake; rather, it seeks to have important decisions in the region be routed through Beijing.
Read the full article in the New Straits Times.
More from CNAS
-
On Alliances in Northeast Asia
Commentary
For the U.S. alliances with South Korea and Japan to thrive — or merely survive — under the next administration, policy makers need to consider different options for different...
By Dr. Duyeon Kim
-
The China-Russia Entente in East Asia
Reports
Executive Summary Closer cooperation between China and Russia is a major force driving global geopolitics. But how relations between the two authoritarian powers are shaping s...
By Jacob Stokes, Evan Wright & Nathaniel Schochet
-
Sharper: Axis of Upheaval
Commentary
A loose but growing coalition between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea demonstrates that their combined strategic interests have the potential to pose significant economic...
By Anna Pederson
-
The Will and the Power: China’s Plan to Undermine Pax Americana
Commentary
From Washington’s Farewell Address to Biden’s national security strategy, the core U.S. national interest, unsurprisingly, has not changed: to ensure the fundamental security ...
By Richard Fontaine & Robert Blackwill
