Russia accuses that :
Southeast Asia is being “militarized” by the West, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed at a news conference following the summit of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Phnom Penh. According to Russia’s accusation, the goal of the West in doing this is to restrain Russian and Chinese interests.
The 46th U.S. President Joe Biden’s Indo-Pacific strategy, according to the foreign minister, would involve “the militarization of this region with an obvious focus on containing China and containing Russian interests in the Asia-Pacific,” and is essentially just an attempt to avoid inclusive structures for regional cooperation.
The Global War on Terror, the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the emergence of President Donald Trump are just a few examples of how anxiety over China’s military development has been accompanied by ambiguity regarding America’s strategic commitment to the region for almost two decades.
Lavrov told reporters that “the United States and its NATO allies are seeking to master this space.”
A clash between Russian and Western leaders at the G20 meeting in Bali has now been set up as a result of this. Vladimir Putin was reportedly too busy to attend the summit, which will be the first of its kind since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February, so Lavrov will lead Russia’s delegation. Ukraine is expected to take center stage on the agenda as Western leaders prepare to publicly criticize Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and urge nations like China and India, who have previously voiced their concerns about the conflict, to condemn Moscow’s actions.
The relationship between Russia and Southeast Asia has attracted considerable interest since Russia launched its “special military operation” in Ukraine in February. The main source of armaments for Southeast Asia is firstly Russia. Second, certain Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) nations, particularly the Philippines, a long-time friend of the US, have grown closer to Russia in recent years. Third, the relationships between Russia and Southeast Asia may have a significant impact on the use of international sanctions and the outcome of the conflict.
Over the past ten years, defense spending in Southeast Asia has been among the highest in the world. Since 2009, the region’s spending has increased by about 10% annually on average. Additionally, regional countries have been investing in new control, communications, computing, and reconnaissance networks as well as new fighter jets, surface warships, and submarines. These capabilities include standoff precision strikes, long-range airborne and underwater attacks, stealth, mobility, and expeditionary warfare.
Why are countries in Southeast Asia equipping themselves so militarily? Many people blame China’s actions for Southeast Asia’s military development and increased defense expenditures. Concern over China’s military development has been matched for almost 20 years by doubt regarding America’s strategic involvement in the area, as demonstrated by the Global War on Terror, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the rise of President Donald Trump.
Vietnam’s rapid capability expansion, for instance, has been attributed to China’s militarization of the South China Sea; from 2011 to 2015, it imported eight times as many weapons as it had in the preceding five years. In 2016, it has eight combat planes, four fast-attack ships, and four submarines purchased, with orders for six additional frigates and two additional submarines. According to reports, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Malaysia are on a similar trajectory. Even though few people think they could match China’s military strength tit for tat, the arms race could nevertheless cost China more should it choose to wage war over, say, disputed waters.
That would render the Russian foreign minister’s claims nothing more than a smear campaign against the United States in the eyes of the world while attempting to make everyone overlook China’s role in the militarization
In order to reduce Russia’s dependency on the West for more than a decade, Putin deliberately fostered strategic ties with Asia, and many ASEAN members saw Moscow as a potential counterbalance to both the U.S. and China. However, Putin’s reputation as well as Russia’s strategic capital has been severely damaged by the bloody war in Ukraine. Russia’s shift to Southeast Asia is unlikely to have a significant impact on the conflict in the absence of a peaceful ending for either side.
Things looked extremely different just a year ago. An exclusive meeting of foreign ministers between Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was conducted to talk about the COVID-19 epidemic, the civil war in Myanmar, and other mutual concerns. As a result, Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, personally met with his clearly eager ASEAN counterparts ahead of the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
The invasion of Ukraine, however, has torpedoed Moscow’s Southeast Asian charm offensive. The Eurasian power has struggled to enlist the support of even a single ASEAN nation during repeated U.N. General Assembly votes on the conflict.
However, the Summit at Bali is still pending as world leaders wait to see the results of the discussion and debate. Though it is still unclear what role Southeast Asia will play, it is evident that the war has strained Russia’s relations with many countries, caused immense destruction, and has simply sparked a serious crisis not only within the country but also globally.
