A change at the helm and heightened tensions raise a familiar question: where does Asean go next?
Strategic refinements
Asean achieved several major diplomatic and economic milestones under Malaysia’s leadership, with Vietnam’s deputy foreign minister Dong Hoang Giang telling FMT recently that 2025 had seen “strong breakthroughs in economic growth and innovation” across the region.
Over the past year, the bloc had advanced talks on the Asean Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), launched the Asean Geo-Economics Task Force, unveiled the Asean Community Vision 2045, and began developing a more coordinated long-term strategy.
“New frameworks are gradually taking shape,” Dong said, referring to DEFA, the Asean Power Grid, and the Asean Digital Master Plan.
“These lay the foundation for a digital community driven by science, technology, and innovation.”
A standout achievement was the inaugural Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)-China Summit.
Speaking at the Asean Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) Forum earlier this month, Institute of Strategic and International Studies chairman Faiz Abdullah said the inclusion of China in the Asean-GCC-China Summit provides the “formidable” partnership with “even more depth”.
“China’s technological advancement and financial infrastructure complement the GCC’s substantial resources,” he said, adding that this ability to convene diverse actors highlights Asean’s centrality amid rising geopolitical tension.
US Ambassador to Malaysia, Edward Kagan, has also underscored Southeast Asia’s strategic significance, stating in a recent interview with FMT that the US is aware that the “most important chapters” of the 21st century will be those written on the Indo-Pacific.
With major powers increasingly shaping the region’s future, Asean has stepped up to remain in the driver’s seat, convening partners to pursue collective interests.
Speaking at the Asean Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) Forum earlier this month, Asean-Malaysia National Secretariat director general Zanariah Zainal Abidin emphasised that the Indo-Pacific is not a battleground to be won.
“It is a region where inclusivity is power, sustainability is strategy, and centrality is responsibility,” she said.
“Asean’s strength lies in dialogue, in our ability to bridge divides, and in our commitment to ensuring that the Indo-Pacific remains open, inclusive, and cooperative.”
Unfinished business
Despite these achievements, Asean’s biggest challenge now lies in execution. Frameworks such as the Asean Geo-Economic Task Force and Industrial Strategy remain largely conceptual.
ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute senior fellow Joanne Lin recently pointed out that greater follow-through is needed to operationalise such frameworks through sectoral roadmaps, funding mechanisms, and private sector engagement.
This is particularly urgent given Asean’s position between competing global technology ecosystems and the rise of economic nationalism.
Speaking at the 9th Asean Media Forum 2025 on Nov 6, deputy investment, trade, and industry minister Liew Chin Tong said Asean could become the “champion of middle technology” – a trusted, neutral technology hub accepted by all sides.
“As long as Asean – particularly Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam – build a reputation as a reliable semiconductor source, we can weather geopolitical tensions,” he said.
Internal development gaps remain a persistent concern, especially after Timor-Leste joined as the 11th member.
“If we don’t act, Asean could split into three tiers of wealth,” warned veteran diplomat Ilango Karuppannan during a recent interview with FMT. “We don’t want this kind of division to threaten Asean’s cohesion.”
Meanwhile, the Thai–Cambodian detente remains fragile, and Asean’s approach to peacekeeping has yet to mature into a cohesive institutional framework.
In a recent column in FMT, International Islamic University professor Phar Kim Beng, a professor of Asean studies at the International Islamic University of Malaysia, said consultation and consensus were more important than ever for Asean.
“What is needed is the political will to activate existing mechanisms and coordinate them effectively in the field,” said Phar, a director at IIUM’s Institute of International and Asean Studies.
The Philippines’s leadership
The Philippines assumes the Asean chairmanship for next year under the theme “Navigating Our Future, Together”, and with a softer global economy and persistent geopolitical tensions, 2026 could prove even more challenging than 2025.
Faiz told the AOIP Forum that Southeast Asia’s interests were now deeply intertwined with an external environment that was complex and increasingly unpredictable.
“The lines between geopolitics and geoeconomics have blurred and now move almost in lockstep,” he said, stressing that international cooperation is crucial to navigating turbulence and change.
The Philippines’s secretary of foreign affairs Maria-Theresa Lazaro told FMT that while innovation is welcome, continuity is key in forging ahead.
Lazaro said Manila’s priorities are reflected in the three pillars of the Asean Community. She also emphasised that the Philippines would not reinvent the wheel, adding that the country is keen to “build on what has already been done and achieved”.
Among Manila’s priorities are progress on the South China Sea Code of Conduct, climate action, and further efforts on Myanmar – a long-standing issue that continues to challenge Asean’s consensus model.
A new beginning
Asean’s current momentum reflects years of cumulative effort, with Malaysia’s 2025 chairmanship sharpening the region’s focus on the need to address rising strategic pressure and a dimmer global economy.
Asean’s ability to act with clarity will be tested more than ever in 2026.
The challenge is no longer defining Asean’s relevance but delivering on the promise of its frameworks, partnerships, and people-centred vision.
Malaysia, in collaboration with Asean members, strengthened the scaffolding. Now the region must decide what to build on top of it.