ArrowArtboardCreated with Sketch.Title ChevronTitle ChevronIcon FacebookIcon LinkedinIcon Mail ContactPath LayerIcon MailPositive ArrowIcon Print
Opinion

ASEAN needs to get back its old hardheaded realism

Bloc's handling of Myanmar and East Timor betrays erosion in strategic thinking

| Myanmar
An empty chair for the Myanmar delegation at the 2022 ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh: It was a mistake for the bloc to bar the junta from meetings.   © Reuters

Bilahari Kausikan is former permanent secretary and ambassador-at-large in the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In the face of the U.S.-China rivalry, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations must regain the clear-eyed realism that characterized its approach to Vietnam's occupation of Cambodia during the 1980s.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored Content This content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.

Nikkei Asian Review, now known as Nikkei Asia, will be the voice of the Asian Century.

Celebrate our next chapter
Free access for everyone - Sep. 30

Find out more