Eurasia Review
10 November 2017
- RSIS
- Media Mentions
- Russia-ASEAN Relations: Where Are They Headed? – Analysis
Russia-ASEAN Relations: Where Are They Headed? – Analysis
Russia-ASEAN relations are likely to develop in a slow, incremental fashion over the next few years. There are reasons for adopting a doubting Thomas approach. To begin with, unlike China and the US, Russia has had no tradition of strong relations with Southeast Asia. Except with Vietnam and Indonesia in the 60s, Moscow’s links with the region had been little to speak of.
Secondly, without meaningful economic/trade ties no mutually beneficial relationship can develop. According to the ASEAN Secretariat, as of November 2016, ASEAN’s total trade with Russia amounted to a mere US$13.3 billion, in contrast with China (US$345 billion) and the United States (US$212 billion). Even President Putin noted this “modest figure compared to trade with other countries in the Asia-Pacific region” during his speech at the Russia-ASEAN Summit in Sochi in May 2016.
…Chris Cheang is Senior Fellow with the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He served three tours in the Singapore Embassy in Moscow between 1994 and 2013.
RSIS / Online
Last updated on 21/11/2017
