The fallacy of multilateralism rhetoric in China-Southeast Asian relations. A neo-realist perspective on regional order building

Abstract

Observers of Sino-Southeast Asian relations are easily blinded by political rhetoric. This paper argues that ASEAN has not succeeded in engaging China in a multilateral framework of regional cooperation but that Beijing has developed a tightening network of bilateral relations with individual ASEAN members that has significantly strengthened the PRC’s position in the region. Just as in the cases of Pax Britannica and Pax Americana, the (re-)emerging Pax Sinica is characterized by the creation and enforcement of rules that favor the dominant state at the centre of the regional order. At the same time the policies of China as a pre-eminent power on the horizon also bring economic, security and stability benefits to the states in its zone of influence. Thus, relations between China and Southeast Asia potentially take the form of a positive rather than a zero-sum game.