ASEAN Faces the Future

What to Expect from the 27th ASEAN Regional Forum

In early September, Vietnam hosted foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)—as well as their counterparts from the United States, China, Japan, Russia, India, the two Koreas, and other Asian nations—for the 27th ASEAN Regional Forum and related meetings. A range of security issues were on the agenda, and the forum was a key test of how well ASEAN as an institution is prepared to handle new challenges facing Southeast Asia.

Originally designed to minimize interstate conflict by building trust among members, ASEAN now faces new challenges. Increasing U.S.-China competition is undercutting the continued relevance and feasibility of ASEAN and its principle of consensus-based decision making, while nontraditional security threats such as climate change and COVID-19 present additional opportunities for instability.

USIP joined the Lee Kwan Yew School of Public Policy for a virtual discussion on the forum and ASEAN’s role in building peace and resilience in Southeast Asia, featuring findings from USIP’s report, “Built for Trust, Not for Conflict: ASEAN Faces the Future.”

Speakers:

Dr. Mely Caballero-Anthony

Professor of International Relations & Head of the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Byron Chong

Research Associate, Centre on Asia and Globalisation at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore

Drew Thompson

Visiting Senior Research Fellow, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore

Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh

Former Ambassador of Vietnam to the United States

Brian Harding, moderator

Senior Expert for Southeast Asia, U.S. Institute of Peace

For more information about this event, please visit

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The United States Institute of Peace is a national, nonpartisan, independent institute, founded by Congress and dedicated to the proposition that a world without violent conflict is possible, practical, and essential for U.S. and global security. In conflict zones abroad, the Institute works with local partners to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflict. To reduce future crises and the need for costly interventions, USIP works with governments and civil societies to help their countries solve their own problems peacefully. The Institute provides expertise, training, analysis, and support to those who are working to build a more peaceful, inclusive world.