Small Power Hedging in an Era of Great-power Politics: Southeast Asian Responses to China’s Pursuit of Energy Security

Abstract

This article contributes to the literature on the international preferences, behaviours and interactions of small powers in relation to great powers. It examines the foreign policy choices of Southeast Asian states in response to China’s energy diplomacy through two case studies: the Malacca Strait and the South China Sea. Southeast Asian states have different interests and priorities and have attempted various forms of what Ba and Kuik refer to as complex “engagement and constrainment” in coping with China’s pursuit of energy security. Smaller Southeast Asian powers, by drawing on support from other powers (including the United States and Japan), have adopted different forms of hedging and resistance strategies in response to China’s oil-diversification plans in the region. The article examines the institutional, structural and domestic dimensions of Southeast Asian hedging strategies, arguing that these are far from uniform across the region. Ultimately, the article demonstrates that strategic competition between great powers provides new opportunities for and constraints on smaller powers as they pursue strategic autonomy, with implications for the Asian regional security order.