Navigating Global Power Struggles: Insights from Kishore Mahbubani on ASEAN and the Global South

On Feb 28, 2023, the Foreign Affairs magazine published an article by Kishore Mahbubani with the title “Asia’s Third Way. How ASEAN Survives – and Thrives – Amid Great-Power Competition”.

As the United States and China find themselves increasingly at odds, Mahbubani posits that ASEAN has charted a pragmatic course by working cooperatively with both powers to mutual benefit. According to Mahbubani, other nations in the Global South could take cues from ASEAN’s approach:

“The vast majority of developing countries are clearly willing to work and cooperate with China. As a result, any U.S. effort to reduce or counter Chinese influence in the global South is doomed to fail. The United States should stop trying to cut China off from the rest of the world and start trying to identify areas where the two great powers can work together. As for the developing countries that wish to partner with both Beijing and Washington, the United States should look to ASEAN for guidance. Its pragmatic balancing act, or something like it, is the future for the rest of the developing world.”

You can read the full article here.

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