Asean strengthening ties with 'all major powers' amid troubled geopolitical situation, says PM Lee

JAKARTA — Amid a"troubled phase" in geopolitics, including concerns over United States-China ties and the South China Sea remaining a potential flashpoint, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' response is to strengthen ties with all major powers, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday .

The 11th Asean-US Summit and the 26th Asean-China Summit were held under the umbrella of the Asean Summit in Jakarta. He also attended the Asean Plus Three Summit on the same day, which involves Asean leaders as well as leaders from China, Japan and South Korea, where he spoke on areas of cooperation including in the digital and green economies.In a fairly brief speech at the Asean-US Summit, Mr Lee said that the US' role had become more critical, especially with Russia's invasion of Ukraine being a"continuing problem" for the world.

Though Mr Lee did not mention the new map in his speeches, he said during the Asean-US summit that the region should"continue to maintain the rights of all states to freedom of navigation and overflight" when it comes to the South China Sea. The code should be internationally recognised and universally agreed to, and also safeguard the rights and interests of all parties, said Mr Lee.

At the Asean meeting with South Korea, which was represented by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Mr Lee said that the situation"remains worrying" in light of North Korea's inter-continental ballistic missile launches, the most recent in July.The UNSC resolutions addressed issues related to the proliferation of weapons, including ballistic missiles.

The"abductions issue" refers to Japanese citizens abducted by the North Korean regime decades ago, in a bid to train spies or steal their identities for espionage purposes.Across the different summits, Mr Lee also spoke about deepening areas of collaboration in cybersecurity, the digital and green economies, and in connectivity, among other areas, between Asean and its respective partners.

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