🔹 Context of the Visit:

• Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia (April 14–18, 2025).
  
  
• The visit aimed to promote China as a reliable economic partner amid rising U.S.–China trade tensions (e.g., 145% tariff on Chinese goods under Trump’s policy).
  
  
• Took place after the “Central Conference on Work Relating to Neighbouring Countries” (April 8–9).
  
  

🔹 Objectives of the Visit:

1. Economic Diplomacy:
   
   

• Present China as an economic alternative amid U.S. protectionism.
  
  
• Promote resilient trade partnerships, infrastructure investment, and technological cooperation.
  
  
• China’s investments: e.g., Cambodia’s FDI exceeding $15 billion in 2024.
  
  

1. Strategic Buffer and Bridge:
   
   

• Southeast Asia as a shield against Western decoupling and sanctions.
  
  
• Promote diplomatic alternatives and shared development to resist containment by the U.S.
  
  

1. Countering the U.S.:
   
   

• Contrast China’s state-led, incentive-driven model U.S.’s liberal order and security alliances (AUKUS, Quad).
  
  
• Present China as a predictable, non-interventionist power.
  
  

🔹 Bilateral Highlights:

• Vietnam: Meetings with key leaders on regional coordination and resilience.
  
  
• Malaysia: Emphasis on peaceful dispute resolution and BRI collaboration.
  
  
• Cambodia: Strengthening economic links and infrastructure diplomacy.
  
  

🔹 Broader Themes:

• China’s economic model: Showcasing BRI and development funding as attractive, unlike U.S. frameworks which are seen as limited or under-delivering.
  
  
• Soft power and norms: Promotion of Asian-led multilateralism, anti-containment narrative.
  
  
• Geopolitical signaling: China asserts it is not isolated, counters narratives of being encircled or unstable.
  
  

🔹 Implications:

• Southeast Asia’s balancing act:
  
  
  • Region wary of being caught between U.S.–China rivalry.
    
    
  • Leaning economically towards China while being cautious of strategic autonomy.
    
    
• S. response challenge:
  
  
  • Difficulty in presenting a coherent economic counter-strategy.
    
    
  • Lack of attractive alternatives like China’s infrastructure funding.
    
    
• China’s regional leadership push:
  
  
  • Aimed at long-term alignment, economic integration, and regional order-building.
    
    

🔸 GS Paper II: International Relations

10 Marks
 Discuss how China is leveraging its economic diplomacy to counter U.S. influence in Southeast Asia. What are the implications for regional stability?