Mapping China’s Military Visits: Implications for U.S-China Security Competition in Southeast Asia

REGIONAL SOCIAL AND CULTURAL STUDIES PROGRAMME

About the Hybrid Seminar

The webinar will present research on the underexplored area of China’s high-level military diplomacy, a facet largely overlooked in prevailing policy analysis. By co-creating an exhaustive dataset through text analysis, the project encompasses over 400 top-level Chinese military visits ASEAN from 2000 to 2023, providing an unparalleled panorama of China’s military engagements in Southeast Asia. Counterintuitively, I found that China’s military engagements have yet to convert into a more intensive form of military cooperation, indexed by joint military exercises and arms sales, with ASEAN countries. This project unveils a multifaceted perspective on China-ASEAN security dialogues and cooperation, contextualized within the escalating power dynamics between the U.S. and China. Moreover, this study furnishes compelling empirical evidence that China’s military diplomacy remains inchoate when juxtaposed with the well-established U.S.-ASEAN military cooperation.

About the Speaker

Mr Jackie Wong is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science and International Relations at the University of Southern California (USC), and currently a Wang Gungwu Visiting Fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. His research focuses on China’s diplomacy and crisis communication. Before that, he was a Predoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University and USC. Commencing in Fall 2023, he will serve as a Predoctoral Research Fellow at George Washington University’s Institute for Security and Conflict Studies.

Registration

This is a hybrid event which will be held at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute (ISEAS).

Attending the Event In-person at ISEAS

To join the event in-person at ISEAS, please register via the ISEAS mobile app, available on iOS and Android via the Apple or Play store. Search “ISEAS” to find or scan this QR code.

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Seating capacity is limited. Do register early to avoid disappointment.

Attending the Event Virtually via Webinar

To join the event virtually at the specified date and time using your internet devices, please register here to receive your unique login link for the webinar via the zoom platform.

If you have questions for the speaker, please key in your questions via the Q&A, stating your name and affiliation. The moderator will field them to the speakers during the Q&A session.