Southeast Asia in an Evolving Global Landscape: Prospects for an Integrated Region and Implications for Canada.

Southeast Asia in an Evolving Global Landscape: Prospects for an Integrated Region and Implications for Canada.

Canada has signalled its intention to comprehensively re-engage the Asia-Pacific region and reclaim its own position as a Pacific nation. Southeast Asia is a vital part of this strategy. As Canada and ASEAN celebrate 40 years of dialogue partnership, which coincides with the golden jubilee of the grouping itself, there is growing momentum to bring the relationship to the next level.

Against this backdrop, Global Affairs Canada held a conference entitled Southeast Asia in an Evolving Global Landscape: Prospects for an Integrated Region and Implications for Canada in Ottawa on May 30, 2017, marking an important next step in this direction. This high-profile event brought together a total of 200 participants, including ambassadors and diplomats from ASEAN member states, leading Canadian and international scholars on Southeast Asia, and representatives from Global Affairs and the broader government community. Punctuated by remarks from The Honourable Chrystia Freeland (Minister of Foreign Affairs), H.E. Le Luong Minh (Secretary-General of ASEAN), and Canada’s 16th Prime Minister, The Right Honourable Joe Clark, discussions during this day-long event covered major issues in Canada-ASEAN relations, from geopolitics to security challenges and economic opportunities. From these stimulating exchanges emerged a set of innovative, yet realistic recommendations on how Canada could better assert its added-value in this strategic region, where a number of major players already vie for attention.

An edited volume from the conference will be launched during the Canadian Council for Southeast Asian Studies’ Conference on October 26-28, 2017. The volume brings together contributions from the panelists, giving them the opportunity to render and further develop their assessments and recommendations. In the process, they lend important support to Canada’s endeavour to develop a sound and effective foreign policy towards Southeast Asia, one that builds on its previous, well-remembered contributions to regional peace and prosperity, but goes beyond earlier engagements. In the process, the volume also identifies what its partners could gain from Canada “being back” in the regional sphere.

Edited by Stéphanie Martel and Nhu Truong. With contributions from Kai Ostwald, Brian Harding, Christopher Goscha, Mairead Lavery, Deborah Helms, Elina Noor, Lindsey W. Ford, Sidney Jones, Jonathan Berkshire Miller, and Paul Evans.