Geopolitics of Southeast Asia

Geopolitics is the study of how geography shapes state foreign and security policy. This chapter shows how in Southeast Asia the impact of geography is mediated by history, culture, and political leadership. It shows how states in similar geographic locations have developed different geopolitical outlooks. Southeast Asia has become an arena of US – China geopolitical rivalry, particularly over the South China Sea. Through ASEAN regionalism, Southeast Asian states seek to avoid the destabilizing consequences of this rivalry but without a common approach. Because of Southeast Asia’s political and cultural complexity, some countries have tilted to China, others to the USA, while some struggle to maintain distance from both. Proximity to China governs the geopolitics of five mainland states. Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand, which have tilted to China, Myanmar struggle with Chinese influence while Vietnam has opposed China in the South China Sea. The five maritime states of Southeast Asia are more distant from China and open to alternative approaches. Indonesia and Malaysia have pursued nonalignment and have avoided alliances but they have come under Chinese pressure in the South China Sea. By contrast, the Philippines is firmly allied with the USA while Singapore depends on the US sponsored regional order without being allied with it. Tiny Brunei looks to China economically and strives to accommodate it in the South China Sea.