Australia Says ASEAN To Play Bigger Role As Global Order Faces Growing Strain

By Noor Bakhtiar Ahmad

MANILA, Feb 10 (Bernama) -- Australia sees the role of ASEAN becoming more mportant as the region navigates increasing geopolitical uncertainty and pressure on the global rules-based system, Australia’s Ambassador to ASEAN Tiffany McDonald said on Tuesday.

McDonald said as the regional organisation approaches its 60th anniversary next year, Australia expects ASEAN’s role in shaping the regional order to become even more pronounced, particularly as geopolitical competition intensifies.

ASEAN’s durability, she added, demonstrates its continued relevance and capacity to adapt to changing strategic conditions.

“In many ways, ASEAN’s role will be even more emphasised going forward,” she said, pointing to the organisation’s ability to bring partners together and manage differences through dialogue.

“ASEAN matters because it brings together the region where much of the world’s future is being shaped,” she said, during a roundtable meeting hosted by the Australian Embassy for participants of the Southeast Asia Maritime Media Visits Project (SEAMMVP) in Makati City, here Tuesday.

Also present at the roundtable meeting were Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Marc Innes-Brown and Director of the La Trobe Centre for Global Security and Professor of International Relations at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Rebecca Strating.

Elaborating further, McDonald said ASEAN plays a central role in convening partners and setting rules and norms that underpin regional stability.

While acknowledging that the global environment has become more challenging, she said Australia continues to view cooperation through ASEAN-led mechanisms as essential to managing tensions and shaping expectations of behaviour in the region.

McDonald said Australia’s approach to the region is framed around what Foreign Minister Penny Wong has described as the “four Rs,” or region, relationships, rules, and resilience, with ASEAN occupying a central place in that framework.

She said countries in Southeast Asia and Australia have benefitted significantly from long-standing international rules and norms, which have provided stability, economic growth, and security across the region for decades.

She noted that Australia has consistently supported ASEAN-led architecture, including mechanisms designed to reduce the risk of conflict and miscalculation, rather than promoting alternative regional structures.

According to McDonald, Australia’s objective is to work with ASEAN to shape a region governed by agreed rules and norms, while ensuring that no single country dominates regional affairs and no country is forced into choosing sides.

“We are invested in maintaining a region where each country is free to pursue its own national interests,” she said.

McDonald said ASEAN’s durability and upcoming six decades as a regional organisation demonstrate its continued relevance and capacity to adapt to changing strategic conditions.

She added that Australia’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN, established in 2021, continues to guide cooperation on regional challenges, including maritime security, economic development, and conflict prevention.

Meanwhile, Brown said Australia and the Philippines continue to strengthen cooperation, particularly in maritime security, defence engagement, and environmental protection.

He said bilateral maritime cooperation has expanded in recent years supported by a 2024 memorandum of understanding on enhanced maritime cooperation which covers civil maritime security, maritime domain awareness, defence cooperation, and respect for international law.

Brown said for its bilateral maritime cooperation programme with the Philippines, Australia has doubled its funding to A$18 million for the 2025–2029 period to focus on capacity-building, equipment support, and training, as well as exchange and scholarship opportunities.

On defence engagement, Brown said cooperation between the two countries has deepened through joint exercises and training activities, including Exercise Amphibious and Land Operations (Exercise ALON), which involved air, land, and maritime components, as well as the Philippines’ participation in Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia.

Brown also highlighted cooperation in marine environmental protection, noting joint efforts in scientific research to restore coral reefs, reduce marine plastics, strengthen oil spill response preparedness, and protect marine ecosystems from the impacts of climate change.

Funded by Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in collaboration with La Trobe University, Melbourne, the SEAMMVP is aimed at fostering greater understanding of regional maritime issues and strengthening a collaborative network of Southeast Asian journalists. Twelve journalists from the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam participated in the programme.

-- BERNAMA