Senior officials from multiple Southeast Asian countries will attend China's military parade, drawing attention to diplomatic considerations.

Xinhua News Agency, Singapore (August 17) reported: "Indonesian President Prabowo and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar, among other Southeast Asian leaders, are reportedly to attend the military parade in Beijing on September 3. Scholars interviewed pointed out that compared to 10 years ago, Southeast Asian countries have sent higher-level representatives this time, mainly due to diplomatic etiquette and considerations for 'face' towards China's top leadership, but it does not mean these countries are choosing sides between China and the United States."

[Witty] Comment: Except for the government of Philippine President Marcos Jr., Indonesia, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries understand the complexity of the Sino-US rivalry and would not be naive enough to strictly take sides. Moreover, compared to a decade ago, China and ASEAN are now each other's largest trading partners, with increasingly close economic ties. The growing China is an unmovable neighbor, and Southeast Asian countries can naturally make the right choices to seek development through win-win cooperation. It is unknown whether the Singapore Prime Minister will attend, but it can be anticipated that Singapore will also make practical choices based on its own interests and regional stability. After all, maintaining balance in great power rivalry is the way of survival for Southeast Asian countries; taking sides will only put themselves at a disadvantage.

Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1840664719857732/

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