Yale-NUS organises inaugural Geopolitics Conference on US-China rivalry

Yale-NUS College will host its inaugural Geopolitics Conference themed ‘United States (US)-China Rivalry: Domestic Determinants of Foreign Policy in Southeast Asia’ from 22 – 24 March 2023.

The US-China strategic competition is often seen as a rivalry confined to the two great powers in which secondary states do not have much influence. The calls for secondary states to “choose sides” are undertaken with a limited understanding of how domestic processes in secondary states shape the choices they make. This three-day conference aims to illuminate how domestic politics of Southeast Asian countries influence their foreign policy, particularly how they position themselves between the US and China.

The keynote speakers for the conference are Mr Ryan Hass, a senior fellow at Brookings Institution who serves as the Michael H. Armacost Chair in Foreign Policy Studies and the Chen-Fu and Cecilia Yen Koo Chair in Taiwan Studies, and Professor Khong Yuen Foong, Li Ka Shing Professor in Political Science from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore (NUS).

Sharing his thoughts on being invited for the Conference, Mr Hass said, “Singapore nurtures some of the most meaningful strategic dialogues in what is certainly a very consequential region of the world for the coming century. It’s an honour to have an opportunity to contribute to the discourse through my participation in the upcoming Yale-NUS conference.”

On 22 March, Mr Hass’ keynote address will examine the US-China rivalry and its implications on the Southeast Asian region and the world.

“Although there are a multitude of issues that will impact the region in the coming years, one constant backdrop will be the unfolding US-China competition. It is an inescapable feature of the strategic landscape in Southeast Asia. Countries and companies who can best understand the nature of that competition will be well positioned to find opportunities and avoid pitfalls resulting from it,” Mr Hass continued.

Prof Khong’s keynote address on 23 March will focus on the two main paradigms being used today to describe the US-China geopolitical contest: the security dilemma paradigm and the power transition paradigm.

Prof Khong elaborated on his address, “To understand why the superpowers are keen to have as many Southeast Asian countries on their side as they can muster, and to get a better grip on whether pleas by ASEAN to the US and China to cooperate more and compete less will resonate with the two superpowers, we need to have a clear understanding of what is driving the rivalry. Interestingly, there is no consensus among international relations scholars on the latter, so I thought it timely to examine the two main “theories” or paradigms out there about the contest—one is more optimistic, the other more pessimistic—to  find out which one better accords with the main contours of China-US relations in the last twenty years.”

Leading up to the conference, scholars from across the region have been invited to submit papers, focusing on the foreign policies of Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Singapore in relation to the US and China. The highlight of the conference will be a line-up of panel sessions held across three days where global and regional academics will discuss the essays alongside the authors, in relation to the variables of domestic politics, political institutions, and leadership in shaping the foreign policy choices of Southeast Asian states.

Among the discussants and paper authors include Professor Alice D Ba from University of Delaware, Professor Arne Westad, Elihu Professor of History and Global Affairs from Yale University, Professor Dr Kuik Cheng-Chwee from National University of Malaysia and Assistant Professor Pongphisoot Busbarat, Director of Institute of Security and International Studies and Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Political Science from Chulalongkorn University.

Professor Joanne Roberts, President of Yale-NUS College said, “Yale-NUS College’s inaugural Geopolitics Conference provides a platform for international experts and academics to share their unique perspectives on foreign policy-making through the lenses of Southeast Asian countries. We are excited to spark conversations and enable future academic collaborations around this extremely relevant and current topic that concerns every global citizen.”

This conference is organised by Yale-NUS College, in partnership with the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS and Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs. It is supported by the Tan Chin Tuan Chinese Culture & Civilisation Programme, which aims to increase the understanding of China and Chinese Culture through this conference series, the Tan Chin Tuan Professorship in China/ Chinese Studies, the Chinese Language Studies Programme & Scholarships, and faculty research related to projects within the areas of Chinese cultural studies. The event will be held at the Yale-NUS College Performance Hall and keynote addresses will also be livestreamed on Zoom.

For more information on the full conference programme, speakers and authors profiles, please visit https://www.yale-nus.edu.sg/events/yale-nus-college-geopolitics-conference-us-china-rivalry-domestic-determinants-of-foreign-policy-in-southeast-asia/ 

For media enquiries, please contact publicaffairs@yale-nus.edu.sg.