Closer Asean-Australia ties will help preserve peace and stability, says PM Lee

Australia is well positioned to support Asean's efforts to maintain regional peace and stability as the great power rivalry between the United States and China plays out in Southeast Asia, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on March 6.

- Tan Tam Mei

"Both Australia and Asean are doing our best to preserve regional peace and stability because we know full well that conflict in the region would affect us directly, and undermine the progress and development that has taken us decades to achieve," he said.

In a speech during the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Melbourne, he said major countries are actively making moves and growing their influence in the region.

Individual countries are in turn positioning themselves in the hope of gaining benefit or to avoid being "caught in between".

"But despite different strategic situations and perspectives, regional countries all share an interest in the peace and prosperity of Southeast Asia and the broader Asia-Pacific region," said PM Lee.

Touching on the different relationships that Asean members or partners have with the major powers, he said that some are treaty allies of the US, while others are more closely aligned with China due to strategic situations or historical developments.

Others, like Singapore, do their best to remain "good friends" with both major powers.

"In fact, this has been Asean's longstanding aim: to expand areas of commonality while acknowledging our differences," PM Lee added.

As Australia has longstanding ties in Southeast Asia, all regional countries accept it as an Asian power, he said, noting that the Melbourne summit - which marked 50 years of relations between the partners - was a show of Australia's clear commitment to Asean that has been consistent through successive Australian administrations.