{
"authors": [
"Rick Waters",
"Ngeow Chow Bing",
"Le Hong Hiep",
"Carla Freeman",
"Sovinda Po",
"Li Mingjiang"
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"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Carnegie China"
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"Global Dialogue Series"
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"primaryCenter": "Carnegie China",
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"regions": [
"China",
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2025 Carnegie Global Dialogue: China and Southeast Asia
Wed, April 23rd, 2025
Live Online
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In April 2025, China held its Central Conference on Work Related to Neighboring Countries for the first time in over a decade—signaling a renewed strategic focus on its periphery amid a shifting global order. Southeast Asia features prominently in Beijing’s recalibrated diplomacy, as evidenced by President Xi Jinping’s state visits this month to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, right after the Central Conference. China’s engagement with Southeast Asia has also taken on heightened urgency in response to the early foreign policy moves of the second Trump administration.
At the same time, Southeast Asian countries continue to navigate a complex strategic environment, balancing their relationships with both major powers while safeguarding their autonomy and interests. What does China’s renewed diplomatic energy in Southeast Asia reveal about its broader regional priorities? How are Southeast Asian states responding to this dual-track competition and engagement? And how sustainable is the current momentum in China–Southeast Asia ties given enduring asymmetries and regional anxieties?
Please join Carnegie China, Carnegie’s Asia-based research center, for an event in its 2025 Carnegie Global Dialogue Series. Rick Waters, Carnegie China’s director, will moderate a discussion on the latest developments in China-Southeast Asia ties, featuring Carla Freeman, senior lecturer for international affairs and director of the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS); Le Hong Hiep, senior fellow and coordinator of the Vietnam Studies Program at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute; Sovinda Po, designated director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies of the Institute for International Studies and Public Policy at Royal University of Phnom Penh; Ngeow Chow Bing and Li Mingjiang, both nonresident scholars at Carnegie China.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
Event Speakers
Rick Waters
Former Director, Carnegie China; Former Maurice R. Greenberg Director’s Chair
Rick Waters was the director of Carnegie China, an East Asia-based research center focused on China’s regional and global role, and the Maurice R. Greenberg Director’s Chair.
Ngeow Chow Bing
Nonresident Scholar, Carnegie China
Ngeow Chow Bing focuses on China’s relations with Southeast Asian countries.
Le Hong Hiep
Senior Fellow and Coordinator, Vietnam Studies Program, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute
Le Hong Hiep is a senior fellow and coordinator of the Vietnam Studies Program at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.
Carla Freeman
Director, SAIS Foreign Policy Institute
Carla Freeman is senior lecturer for international affairs and director of the Foreign Policy Institute at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Sovinda Po
Designated Director, Center for Southeast Asian Studies of the Institute for International Studies and Public Policy, Royal University of Phnom Penh
Sovinda Po is the designated director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies of the Institute for International Studies and Public Policy at Royal University of Phnom Penh.
Li Mingjiang
Nonresident Scholar, Carnegie China
Li Mingjiang’s main research interests include Chinese foreign policy, China-ASEAN relations, Sino-U.S. relations, global governance, and Asia-Pacific security.