AUKUS Can Endanger ASEAN Centrality
Abstract
The article analyses how AUKUS, sharing its nuclear-powered submarine with Australia, could change the balance in the Asia-Pacific region against The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The study considers that AUKUS' nuclear-powered submarine (SSN) operation will undermine ASEAN centrality and the peace-stability environment in the region. The research included information on the countries’ foreign policy discourses and it made inferences by examining the information about the states' military expenditures. The article mentioned the security dilemma of the ASEAN member countries after the SSN initiative of AUKUS and also it studied what kind of impact this situation would have on the future of the organization. The study reveals that AUKUS will increase the arms race, and as a result, ASEAN centrality and stability-oriented structure will be disrupted in the China-US struggle. While ASEAN will continue as an economically strong organization by participating in the arms race, AUKUS, as a military initiative, has turned the balance in the region in favour of the USA in the short term.
Keywords
Kaynakça
- Acharya, A. (2014). From ASEAN centrality to regional integration? International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, 433-457.
- Acharya, A. (2017). ASEAN and the Challenge of Change: How the Regional Association is Adapting to a New Global Order. International Affairs, 507-526.
- Acharya, A. (2020). The End of ASEAN Centrality? Assessing the ASEAN Way in an Era of Asian Maritime Disputes. International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, 361-386.
- AP News. (2022, June 28). "Australia FM stresses" . Retrieved April 13, 2023, from AP News: https://apnews.com/article/china-asia-australia-global-trade-b3bb95edec2baa9584fb8faead271222
- Beeson, M. (2018). Regionalism and Globalization in East Asia: Politics, Security and Economic Development. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Blaxland, J. (2023 , March 13). Aukus will bolster stability in the Asia-Pacific, not undermine it. Retrieved April 12, 2023, from The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/mar/13/aukus-will-bolster-stability-in-the-asia-pacific-not-undermine-it
- Charney, M. W. (2022). AUKUS and the Indo-Pacific: Challenges and Opportunities. Asian Survey, 25-49.
- Cheng, M. (2022). AUKUS: The Changing Dynamic and Its Regional Implications. European Journal of Development Studies, 1-7.
- Chubb, P. (2021). Australia’s New Strategic Partnering: Implications of the AUKUS Submarine Deal. Naval War College Review, 47-65.
- Emmers, R., & Rüland, J. (2021). The AUKUS Pact and Southeast Asia: Rethinking ASEAN Centrality. Berlin: Springer.