Laos Summit: Rise of the ASEAN Tigers

The leaders of one of the world’s most dynamic and fastest-growing economic blocs met in the Laotian capital of Vientiane to discuss regional integration and shared security challenges, while the issue of the South China Sea loomed large and a new scandal threatened to further undercut American-Philippine relations.

China had encouraged its ASEAN partners to agree to a shared code of conduct for the South China Sea, something which the US has opposed. While Vietnam remains at serious loggerheads with China, the Philippines have been warming up so much that its new president Rodrigo Duterte felt confident enough to lambast Obama before the gathering even began, calling him an “S.O.B.” and threatening to cuss him out at the forum. While the event was supposed to be about the bloc’s members, it quickly took on shades of the US-China rivalry as both Great Powers overshadowed the summit.

Joining us today as our in-studio guest to discuss this is Mr. Gleb Ivaschentsov, Russia’s former ambassador to Myanmar and South Korea and a member of the Russian International Affairs Council. We also have on the line with us Mr. Bryce Swerhun, researcher at the City University of Hong Kong and Mr. Wan Ahmad Fayhsal, Malaysian political commentator.