Southeast Asia and China: Enmeshment or Deluded Engagement?

The growing rhetoric on ASEAN's successful containment of China through its enmeshment and hedging strategies suffered a setback when Chinese foreign policy signalled a clear shift from “good neighbourliness” to aggressive “muscle flexing”. The failure of ASEAN led institutions like ARF to impact regional maritime disputes and the growing discord between China and member countries over disputed islands has brought the organisation's role as a security community under the scanner. This paper analyses the failure of that policy and contemplates the future of the region under the shadow of a rising China.