Sameed Basha

Opinion | Australia’s offer to fund Asean security must be met with extreme caution

Amid US-China tensions, South China Sea spats and a tense Taiwan Strait, what the region needs to secure peace and economic security is not more weapons but greater diplomacy

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The Asean-Australia Special Summit was held in Melbourne from March 2-6 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Asean-Australia dialogue relations. Photo: AFP

Sameed Basha

Published: 5:30am, 12 Mar 2024

In playing up the China threat and sowing the seeds of discontent, Australia has missed an opportunity to show its maturity as a regional stakeholder at its recent summit with Asean in Melbourne.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong talked about “the most confronting circumstances in our region in decades”, including “destabilising, provocative and coercive actions”, in comments that did not name China but were clearly aimed at it.

Announcing A$286.5 million (US$186.7 million) in funding for Asean projects in areas including maritime security, Wong added that: “What happens in the South China Sea, in the Taiwan Strait, in the Mekong subregion, across the Indo-Pacific, affects us all.”

At the Melbourne summit, the Philippines, which has increasingly been clashing with China over their South China Sea claims, called for a stronger united stand in upholding the maritime rule of law. Malaysia is resisting the pressure to choose sides, however, with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim saying: “We do not have a problem with China.”

This view is not uncommon. For example, while 43 per cent believe conflict over Taiwan would destabilise the region, about a third also fear their countries being forced to take sides over it and feel their governments should take a neutral position, according to a survey last year of more than 1,300 people across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Over 45 per cent say their governments should oppose the use of force and reach for diplomacy instead.

Yet Australia continues to beat the war drums. Despite reaching for a thaw in economic ties with China, Australia has continued with its military posturing as a staunch US ally. If Asean follows the same approach Australia uses to deal with China, it may cause fracturing within the organisation and invite instability to the region.