Regional Security Architecture Programme

The Regional Security Architecture Programme conducts research, networking and teaching on security multilateralism in the Asia Pacific, including on ASEAN and ASEAN-led forums. Since its inception in 2002, the Programme’s output has contributed to the systematic accumulation of scholarly and policy-based knowledge on multilateralism and security arrangements in the region.

The Programme:

• Conducts studies on the evolving roles, strengths and challenges of the various cooperative security arrangements, as well as the overall development of the regional security architecture;
• Participates in relevant collaborative projects and networking activities;
• Contributes towards the knowledge and discourse on regional security architecture through publications and events.

Publications and Events

2023

1. “The Quad’s Public Goods Approach: Countering the BRI”, 9DASHLINE, 23 March 2023, Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
2. “China’s Global Security Initiative: Implications for ASEAN”, IDSS Paper, 3 March 2023, Henrick Tsjeng
3. “ASEAN and Multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: Past, Present, and Future”, 2023 Raisina Files – Adrift at Sea: Lighthouse in the Tempest?, edited by Samir Saran and Vinia Mukherjee (New Delhi: Observer Research Foundation, 2023), Sarah Teo
4. “The Next Cyber Phase of the Russia-Ukraine War Will Echo in Asia”, The Diplomat, 11 February 2023, Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
5. “Indonesia’s 2023 ASEAN Chairmanship: What to Expect”, IDSS Paper, 6 January 2023, Tan See Seng
6. “Advancing Cyber and Information Security Cooperation in ASEAN”, IDSS Paper, 4 January 2023, Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
7. “South Korea in the ASEAN-centered regional network”, Asia Politics & Policy, 2023, Sarah Teo
8. Middle Powers in Asia Pacific Multilateralism: A Differential Framework (Bristol: Bristol University Press, 2023), Sarah Teo

2022

1. “Enhancing ASEAN-EU Cooperation in Non-Traditional Security”, Modern Diplomacy, 17 December 2022, Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
2. “ASEAN Defence Cooperation: Looking Towards Myanmar’s Prospective Chairmanship in 2026”, IDSS Paper, 16 December 2022, Henrick Tsjeng
3. “A Singaporean Perspective on Singapore-ROK Security Relations”, Navigating Uncharted Waters: Security Cooperation between ROK and ASEAN, edited by Muhammad Waffaa Kharisma and Andrew Mantong (Jakarta: Centre for Strategic and International Studies, 2022), Shawn Ho
4. “EU-ASEAN Strategic Partnership: Opportunities and Challenges”, International Symposium on EU-ASEAN at 45: From Dialogue Partnership to Strategic Partnership by Centre for ASEAN Regionalism Universiti Malaya (CARUM) and Asia-Europe Institute (AEI), Universiti Malaya, 7 Dec 2022, Igor Driesmans, Anthony Rogers, Paul Gillespie, Kamal Salih, and Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
5. “China’s SCO Diplomacy: Creating a Parallel World Order?”, The Politburo, 23 November 2022, Henrick Tsjeng and Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
6. “A balancing act: South Korea’s Indo-Pacific turn”, Korea On Point, 20 November 2022, Sarah Teo
7. “US National Security Strategy and 20th CCP Congress: What They Mean for ASEAN Regional Security”, IDSS Paper, 7 November 2022, Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman
8. “Big Corporations and the Future of the Internet”, CENS Workshop on DRUMS 2022: Security in a Post Truth World, 3 Nov 2022, Quinn McKew, Veena McCoole, Alice Budisatrijo and Muhammad Faizal Abdul Rahman (Chair)
9. “Caught in the Middle? Middle Powers amid U.S.-China Competition”, Asia Policy, 2022, Hoo Tiang Boon and Sarah Teo
10. “AUKUS and the Non-proliferation Debate”, IDSS Paper, 13 October 2022, Alvin Chew and Sarah Teo
11. “Making and Maintaining International Order: What Asians Want”, LKYSPP Festival of Ideas, 10 October 2022, Kanti Bajpai, Evan Laksmana, Dylan Loh, Sarah Teo
12. “Singapore’s Relations with North and South Korea: In Pursuit of Pragmatism and Principles”, in Lam Peng Er, Contemporary Korea-Southeast Asian Relations: Bilateral and Multilateral, Oxon: Routledge, 2022, pp. 131-152, Sarah Teo
13. “Whither Seoul’s New Southern Policy Plus? A Preference by ASEAN for Old Wine in a New Bottle”, Korea Bulletin, no. 2 (April–June 2022), pp. 21-22, Shawn Ho
14. “Impact of Major Power Minilateralism on ASEAN’s Multilateralism”, ISIS Malaysia 35th Asia-Pacific Roundtable, 5-7 July 2022, Melissa Conley Tyler, Dino Patti Djalal, Aries A. Arugay, Sarah Teo
15. “The Quad and ASEAN — Where to Next? ”, East Asia Forum, 25 June 2022, Sarah Teo
16. “Australia and South Korea: Resetting Middle Power Ambitions”, The Diplomat, 16 June 2022, Peter K. Lee and Sarah Teo
17. “Thucydides or Isocrates? The choice before the Asia-Pacific”, The Straits Times, 9 June 2022, Tan See Seng
18. “The New Republic of Korea Administration: Foreign and Security Challenges”, Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies Webinar, 25 May 2022, Robert Dujarric, Sean King, Eunjung Lim and Shawn Ho
19. “South Korea’s role in the Indo-Pacific: Opportunities and challenges under the Yoon administration”, Brookings Webinar, 18 May 2022, Tanvi Madan, Andrew Yeo, Kuyoun Chang, Zack Cooper, Kei Koga and Sarah Teo
20. “Middle Powers amid Sino-U.S. Rivalry: Assessing the ‘Good Regional Citizenship’ of Australia and Indonesia”, The Pacific Review, 2022, Sarah Teo
21. “Introduction – Interests, Initiatives, and Influence: Geopolitics in the Mekong Subregion”, Asia Policy, 2022, Sarah Teo
22. “South Korea and the Indo-Pacific: After Afghanistan and Ukraine?”, KIC-EAI Conference, 13 May 2022, Chen Gang, Park Hahnkyu, Kim Sunil, Baek Buhm-Suk, Shawn Ho, Moon Don and Lance Gore
23. “From Moon to Yoon: Next Steps in Korean Politics and Foreign Relations”, Yale-NUS Emerging Markets Institute Webinar, 12 April 2022, Moon Chung-in, Shawn Ho and Ng Jun Jie
24. “Cambodia’s ASEAN Chairmanship: Steering ASEAN Through Changing Times”, RSIS Panel Webinar, 5 April 2022, Ralf Emmers, Nem Sowath, Teo Eng Dih, Chheang Vannarith, Shafiah F. Muhibat, Joel Ng, Mely Caballero-Anthony
25. “Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and Possible Implications for ADMM-Plus”, IDSS Paper, 21 March 2022, Henrick Tsjeng
26. “The More Things Change… How Regional Security Multilateralism in the Asia Pacific is Evolving”, Melbourne Asia Review, 18 March 2022, Sarah Teo
27. “Korean Peninsula-Southeast Asia Relations: 2021 in Review”, Korea Bulletin, 25 February 2022, Shawn Ho
28. “What the Myanmar Crisis says about ASEAN’s Challenges and Strengths”, IDSS Paper, 10 February 2022, Henrick Tsjeng
29. “A German Warship in Asia: Debunking Myths and Misconceptions”, IDSS Paper, 9 February 2022, Frederick Kliem
30. “ASEAN and Myanmar: Litmus Test or Existential Challenge?”, RSIS Commentary, 19 January 2022, Tan See Seng
31. “Toward a Differentiation-Based Framework for Middle Power Behavior”, International Theory, 2022, Sarah Teo
32. “AUKUS: Not That Bad for ASEAN?”, IDSS Paper, 5 January 2022, Tan See Seng

2021

1. “Advancing the ASEAN-Korea Partnership: From Sectoral Dialogue Relations to the New Southern Policy Plus”, The New Southern Policy Plus Progress and Way Forward edited by Kwon Hyung Lee and Yoon Jae Ro, (Sejong: Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, 2021), Ong Keng Yong, Sarah Teo and Shawn Ho
2. “Three Key Challenges for Cambodia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2022”, IDSS Paper, 30 December 2021, Shawn Ho and Sovinda Po
3. “Towards ICCS 2022 – HADR in Multilateral Asia: Whither Faith-Based Actors?”, RSIS Commentary, 27 December 2021, Tan See Seng
4. “Assessing Seoul’s New Southern Policy Plus: Perspectives from ASEAN, Korea and India”, EAI International Conference, 3 December 2021, Chen Gang, Jojin V. John, Resi Qurrata Aini, Yandry Kurniawan, Shawn Ho and Kim Hyungjong
5. “The Potential and Way Forward for Greater Regional Cybersecurity Cooperation”, IDSS Paper, 15 November 2021, Eugene Tan and Shawn Ho
6. “China’s Vision for Southeast Asia: The Struggle to Create a ‘Friendly Backyard’”, IDSS Paper, 5 November 2021, Henrick Tsjeng.
7. “The Europeans in the Indo-Pacific: Jointly or National, and What Does Asia Think?”, RSIS Panel Webinar, 19 October 2021, Frederick Kliem, Alice Billon-Galland, Anisa Heritage, Gilang Kembara, Gao Jian and Sarah Teo
8. “(Still) Supporting the Indispensable Power: Singapore’s Relations with the United States from Trump to Biden”, Asia Policy, 2021, See Seng Tan
9. “Middle Power Awkwardness? Indonesia’s Norm Entrepreneurship in ASEAN”, Awkward Powers: Escaping Traditional Great and Middle Power Theory edited by Gabriele Abbondanza and Thomas Stow Wilkins, (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021), Sarah Teo
10. “ASEAN’s Standing in the Regional Order”, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute’s 36th ASEAN Roundtable, 12-13 October 2021, Alice Ba, Tan See Seng, William Choong.
11. “Biden’s Underwhelming Engagement with Southeast Asia”, East Asia Forum, 2 October 2021, See Seng Tan
12. “Re-imagining multilateralism and rules-based order”, ANU Crawford Leadership Forum, 6-7 September 2021, Melissa-Conley Tyler, Thomas Wright, Sarah Teo, Heng Wang and Caroline Millar
13. “What North Korea Gains From Participating in the ASEAN Regional Forum”, NK News, 27 August 2021, Shawn Ho and Seksan Anantasirikiat
14. “German Warship in Asia: Berlin’s Indo-Pacific Strategy?”, RSIS Commentary, 24 August 2021, Frederick Kliem
15. “Creating Synergies between the ADMM and Sub-regional Arrangements”, IDSS Paper, 24 August 2021, Sarah Teo and Tan Wei
16. “America, ASEAN and the Question of ASEAN’s Centrality”, IDSS Paper, 20 August 2021, Tan See Seng
17. “The Australia-US alliance: Views from the region”, United States Studies Center Webinar, 20 August 2021, Susannah Patton, Sarah Teo, Evan A. Laksmana and Shahriman Lockman
18. “Can Faith in US Leadership in Southeast Asia be Restored?”, CNA, 5 August 2021, Tan See Seng
19. “Reviewed Work: Global Perspectives on China’s Belt and Road Initiative by Florian Schneider”, Contemporary Southeast Asia, 2021, Wu Shang-Su
20. “Regional Crisis Management: Multilateralism”, The Katipunan Dialogue Podcast, 23 July 2021, Jean Encinas Franco, Sarah Teo and Rommel Jude Ong
21. “Inconsistent Struggle Shadowed by the Dragon: Taiwan’s Defence Under the Tsai Ing-wen Administration”, Taiwan: Environmental, Political and Social Issues edited by Caleb M. Clark, Alexander C. Tan and Karl Ho, (New York: Nova, 2021), Shang-su Wu
22. “China’s railway diplomacy under the Belt and Road Initiative,” Research Handbook on the Belt and Road Initiative edited by Joseph Chinyong Liow, Hong Liu and Gong Xue, (London: Edward Elgar, 2021), Shang-su Wu
23. “The grey zone, hybrid war, and minilateralism”, ANU National Security College Futures Hub Podcast, 17 June 2021, Chris Farnham, Sascha Bachmann, Elisabeth Braw, Akiko Fukushima, Frank Hoffman, Takashi Shiraishi, Abhijit Singh, Sarah Teo, Aarshi Tirkey and Jingdong Yuan
24. “The Ambitions and Reality of the Quad”, ASPI The Strategist, 15 June 2021, Huong Le Thu and Sarah Teo
25.  “Emerging Leader Fellowship 2021 Online Peace and Unification Academy”,  National Institute for Unification Education International Conference, 15 June 2021, Jin-Heon Jung Niu, Tianjiao Jiang, You-Jun Chen, Shawn Ho, Hoo Chiew Ping, Waseem Ishaque, Rahul Mishra, Seksan Anantasirikiat, Naoko Kumagai, Ewald Konig and Liudmila Zakharova
26. “Rewinding to the Singapore Summit to Move U.S.-DPRK Relations Forward”, NK News, 12 June 2021, Adrian Ang and Shawn Ho
27. “Peace and Conflict Diplomacy in a Turbulent World”, United States Institute of Peace Webinar, 10 June 2021, Lise Grande, Chester Crocker, George Moose, Barbara Bodine, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, Fen Hampson, See Seng Tan, Solomon Dersso and Pamela Aall
28. “Southeast Asia’s Struggle for Autonomy Amid US−China Rivalry”, Asia-Pacific Regional Security Assessment 2021 edited by The International Institute for Strategic Studies, (London: The International Institute for Strategic Studies, 2021), Tan See Seng
29. “Chinese Aircraft Approaching! An Opportunity for Malaysian Airpower”, Fulcrum, 4 June 2021, Wu Shang-Su
30. “Taiwan and India: Building Bigger Together?”, RSIS Commentary, 6 May 2021, Rajesh Basrur and Wu Shang-Su
31. The European Union’s Security Relations with Asian Partners, edited by Thomas Christiansen, Emil Kirchner and See Seng Tan, (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021)
32. “The European Union’s Security Relations with Asian Partners”, The European Union’s Security Relations with Asian Partners edited by Thomas Christiansen, Emil Kirchner and See Seng Tan, (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021), Thomas Christiansen, Emil Kirchner and See Seng Tan
33. “Regional Security”, The European Union’s Security Relations with Asian Partners edited by Thomas Christiansen, Emil Kirchner and See Seng Tan, (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021), See Seng Tan and Thomas Diez
34. “Conclusion: The European Union’s Security Relations with Asia—Partners or Rivals?”, The European Union’s Security Relations with Asian Partners edited by Thomas Christiansen, Emil Kirchner and See Seng Tan, (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021), See Seng Tan, Thomas Christiansen and Emil Kirchner
35. “Military Modernisation in Southeast Asia in the Indo-Pacific Strategic Context,” Defense & Security Analysis, 2021, Shang-su Wu
36. “Can ASEAN’s Institutions Do Preventive Diplomacy?”, Diplomacy and the Future of World Order edited by Chester A. Crocker, Fen Osler Hampson and Pamela Aall, (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2021), See Seng Tan.
37. “China’s pineapple ban exposes Taiwan’s vulnerability”, East Asia Forum, 24 April 2021, Shang-Su Wu
38. “Trends in Indo-Pacific Regional Multilateralism: Scenarios for ASEAN”, ANU National Security College Futures Hub, April 2021, Sarah Teo
39. “Strengthening Southeast Asia-North Korea Engagement in the Post-COVID-19 Era”, The Diplomat, 26 March 2021, Shawn Ho and Jeeyoon Chung
40. “Will Myanmar’s coup help China influence ASEAN?”, East Asia Forum, 10 March 2021, Henrick Z Tsjeng
41. “Taiwan’s Security: An Intertwined Knot”, Indo-Pacific Perspectives, March 2021, Wu Shang-su
42. “ASEAN can do better on Myanmar this time”, CNA, 5 February 2021, Tan See Seng
43. “Rules-Based Order? Strengthening Consensus on the Rules and Principles Underpinning the International Order”, Asialink, 2021, Joel Ng, Sarah Teo and Benjamin Ho
44. “Moving Singapore into a Post-COVID World”, Selected Essays by RSIS Researchers – 2020, 18 January 2021, Benjamin Ho, Joel Ng and Sarah Teo

2020

1. “Whither the People in the ASEAN Community? Prospects in Regional Community Building Above and Below the State”, Regions and Cohesion, 2020, See Seng Tan
2. “US Presidential Election 2020 – What Might ASEAN Expect from Biden?”, RSIS Commentary, 17 November 2020, Tan See Seng
3. “Sustaining the New Southern Policy amid COVID-19: An ASEAN Perspective”, ASEAN-Korea Centre, 22 October 2020, Shawn Ho
4. “What the Quad Meeting Means for ASEAN”, The Diplomat, 9 October 2020, Sarah Teo
5. “Southeast Asian Military Acquisition under the China-Quad Dynamics”, Middle Power Conference Papers 2020, October 2020, Shang-su Wu
6. “US Presidential Election 2020 – How Will Biden Respond to China?”, RSIS Commentary, 17 September 2020, Tan See Seng
7. “ASEAN-China Relations: Rough Seas and a Rocky Road Ahead”, The Politburo, 10 August 2020, Henrick Tsjeng
8. “Vietnam’s Pandemic Countermeasure: An Essential Element of Deterrence”, Australian Outlook, 15 July 2020, Shang-su Wu
9. “Osprey in the archipelago: The deal of MV-22 to Indonesia”, The Jakarta Post, 14 July 2020, Shang-Su Wu
10. “Modernising the Philippine Navy”, East Asia Forum, 8 July 2020, Shang-Su Wu
11. “Coping with the Dragon: Vulnerability and Engagement in Singapore-China Relations”, The Deer and the Dragon: Southeast Asia and China in the 21st Century edited by Donald K. Emmerson, (Palo Alto: Shorenstein APARC, 2020), See Seng Tan
12. Minilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism, and ASEAN, edited by Bhubhindar Singh and Sarah Teo, (Oxon: Routledge, 2020)
13. “Introduction”, Minilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism, and ASEAN edited by Bhubhindar Singh and Sarah Teo, (Oxon: Routledge, 2020), Bhubhindar Singh and Sarah Teo
14. “Lancang-Mekong Cooperation: The Current State of China’s Hydro-politics”, Minilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism, and ASEAN edited by Bhubhindar Singh and Sarah Teo (Oxon: Routledge, 2020), Shang-su Wu
15. “ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus: Multilateralism mimicking minilateralism?”, Minilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism, and ASEAN edited by Bhubhindar Singh and Sarah Teo, (Oxon: Routledge, 2020), See Seng Tan
16. “Global Health Security: COVID-19 and Its Impacts – The ASEAN-Led Multilateral Order: Unravelling?”, RSIS Commentary, 11 May 2020, Henrick Tsjeng and Shawn Ho
17. “How the COVID-19 Pandemic Deepens the Challenge of Sino-U.S Rivalry for ASEAN”, The Politburo, 10 May 2020, Sarah Teo
18. “Taiwan and China attempt civility in coronavirus crisis”, Nikkei Asian Review, 7 April 2020, Wu Shang-Su
19. “ASEAN and Multilateralism 2.0: Locating ASEAN Centrality within the FOIP and the BRI”, Contested Multilateralism 2.0 and Asian Security Dynamics edited by Kai He, (Oxon: Routledge, 2020), See Seng Tan
20. “Pandemic Control: A New Area for ASEAN Defense Cooperation?”, The Diplomat, 17 March 2020, Henrick Z Tsjeng
21. “Areas for improvement in ASEAN multilateralism”, The ASEAN Post, 8 March 2020, Shawn Ho
22. “Cruise control? Securitizing luxury cruise ships in times of coronavirus”, The Jakarta Post, 29 February 2020, Alan Chong and Wu Shang-su
23. “Indonesia’s Burgeoning Railway Diplomacy”, The Diplomat, 27 February 2020, Shang-su Wu
24. “ADMM+ a plus for mitigating US–China rivalry”, East Asia Forum, 22 February 2020, See Seng Tan
25. “Three Scenarios for the Quad and for ASEAN”, PacNet, 6 February 2020, Amanda Trea Phua and Sarah Teo
26. “ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific: Seizing the Narrative?”, RSIS Commentary, 23 January 2020, Bhubhindar Singh and Henrick Z Tsjeng
27. “ADMM-Plus Exercises: A Platform for Power Competition?”, Australian Outlook, 22 January 2020, Shang-su Wu
28. “Belt and rail: New Vietnam-China train aims to put relations on track”, The Interpreter, 15 January 2020, Wu Shang-su
29. “Strengthening the ASEAN-centric multilateral security architecture”, East Asia Forum, 7 January 2020, Sarah Teo
30. “The Future of the San Francisco System: Pressures and Prospects”, Asian Politics & Policy, 2020, Sarah Teo and Ralf Emmers
31. “Consigned to Hedge: South-east Asia and America’s ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’ Strategy”, International Affairs, 2020, Tan See Seng
32. “Rail Developments Under the BRI”, Critical Reflections on China’s Belt & Road Initiative edited by Alan Chong and Pham Quang Minh, (New York: Springer, 2020), Shang-su Wu.
33. “Smart Taipei City: understanding policy motivations, approaches and implementation”, Smart Cities in Asia: Governing Development in the Era of Hyper-Connectivity edited by Yu-Min Joo and Teck-Boon Tan, (Surrey: Edward Elgar, 2020), Shang-su Wu.
34. “Taiwan: The Strait Challenge”, Air Forces: The Next Generation edited by Amit Gupta, (Hampshire: Howgate, 2020), Wu Shang-su.

Programme Staff

Dr Sarah Teo
Assistant Professor
Coordinator, Regional Security Architecture Programme, IDSS
DID: +65 6513 2076
Email: [email protected]

Mr Muhammad Faizal Bin Abdul Rahman
Research Fellow
Regional Security Architecture Programme, IDSS
DID: +65 6790 6415
Email: [email protected]

Mr Henrick Tsjeng
Associate Research Fellow
Regional Security Architecture Programme, IDSS
DID: +65 6790 6424
Email: [email protected]

Non-Resident

Dr Tan See Seng
Research Adviser
Regional Security Architecture Programme, IDSS
Email: [email protected]