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Majority of ASEAN people favor China over U.S., survey finds
In a first, Beijing becomes Southeast Asia's preferred choice over Washington
asia.nikkei.com
Over half of Southeast Asians would now prefer to align with China over the U.S. if ASEAN were forced to choose between the rival superpowers, a regional survey by a Singapore-based think tank showed Tuesday, reflecting Beijing's growing influence in the region.
According to the State of Southeast Asia 2024 survey, compiled by the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, 50.5% of respondents opted for China and 49.5% preferred the U.S. if ASEAN had to pick sides -- the first time Beijing edged past Washington since the annual survey started asking the question in 2020.
Last year's survey showed 38.9% preferred China and 61.1% chose the U.S.
This is a trend that is not going to change anytime soon as the US is seen as unreliable due to the political divisions in the country and our own hypocrisy in the things we condemn yet do ourselves.
Also, these smaller countries are starting to band together to stand up to the bullying from the US and China.
Yet the survey showed that Southeast Asians do not want to choose sides at all. Asked how ASEAN should respond to the intensifying U.S.-China rivalry, just 8% said the bloc has to choose between them because remaining neutral is impractical, while 46.8% said it should prioritize bolstering its resilience and unity to counter pressure from both the U.S. and China.
