May 14, 2026
The U.S. Is Losing Ground to China in Southeast Asia
This article was originally published in World Politics Review.
Late last month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a five-day, three-nation tour through Southeast Asia, visiting Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar. Coupled with Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit last April to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, it is a sign that Beijing views the region as a strategic and economic priority.
Without routine engagement, Southeast Asian countries become uneasy about U.S. commitments and tend to look elsewhere—such as to China—to fulfill their needs.
By contrast, since his return to office last year, U.S. President Donald Trump has visited only one country in Southeast Asia—Malaysia—for a regional summit last year. His secretary of state and national security adviser, Marco Rubio, has likewise only been to Malaysia twice—once to arrange Trump’s trip, and again alongside him for the summit. Rubio has not visited any other Southeast Asian country. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fared only marginally better, having visited the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam—though all last year.
Read the full article in World Politics Review.
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