Abstract
Asia is in flux. Although ostensibly peaceful, relations between Asian states are changing rapidly. In recent years Asian economies have posted worldbest growth statistics (although they have been severely hit by the economic downturn, especially since the onset of the international financial crisis in September 2008). Regional interdependencies are binding economies and societies together like never before. Multilateral mechanisms are growing, and intergovernmental cooperation has reached new levels. While terrorism is a persistent problem in Southeast Asia, no interstate or intrastate wars rage in the region. Conflict around the normally volatile Tawain Strait has been notably muted. Previous hostilities have been quieted and relations among former adversaries normalized.

Author

Christopher B. Whitney, Study director and editor-in-chief

David Shambaugh, Professor, George Washington Univ., Brookings Institution

Yet beneath the surface, suspicions and tensions among societies are evident. Historical memory has not been erased between longtime regional adversaries. The rise of China is reshaping the strategic map.1 Japan’s former Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda’s “Asia First” policy indicated a desire for his country to reengage on the regional stage. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gained a new level of confidence and regional engagement after celebrating its fortieth anniversary and promulgating a new charter. Beyond shifting power, regional “hotspots” like North Korea and the “black spot” of Myanmar fester and continue to threaten regional stability. Globalization and nontraditional security concerns affect all countries in the region.

The region is also experiencing a shift in power, both in terms of U.S.-China relations and key regional relationships. The emergence of China as a major power has strengthened the region’s role as a global economic engine and altered the regional balance of power. While the United States remains the leading military power in Asia and the region’s primary export market, some have questioned its reliability, responsibility, and continued military presence in the region. China has used its growing economic power, increased East Asian economic interdependence, and skillful diplomacy to co-opt the interests of its neighbors and assert its influence. As a result of these and other developments, East Asia as a region is facing a new political task of finding ways to reduce tensions, misunderstandings, and misinterpretations prevalent in any period of power shift and transition.

To better understand the power shift and the U.S. role compared to China and other regional actors, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the East Asia Institute (EAI) surveyed people in six countries—China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the United States—in the first half of 2008 about regional security and economic integration in Asia and about how these nations perceive each other. In a new era of interconnectedness and growing interdependencies, the goal was to examine Asian perceptions of these six nations’ “soft power” in the region...(Continued)