At the most current Nato conference in Washington, Some Indo-Pacific nations took part, indicating that the transatlantic military alliance is looking to grow if not in terms of membership but also in terms of power and control to other areas of the world.
Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea are the only nations that these four nations discuss with the NATO members about China’s safety concerns.
And as in past summits, the meeting addressed questions about how to best deal with the growing strain in the Indo-Pacific and how to deal with it. However, given its recent success in Eastern Europe, the expansion of the US-led Nato will most likely lead to rather than de-escalate the tension in the Indo-Pacific, despite every nation having a right to choose its supporters to protect themselves.
Nato’s growth is inviting difficulty, the last thing the place needs today. Indonesia may make a powerful statement opposing Nato’s program to work its influence and power in any way in this region of the world, either on its own or through Asean. Indonesia may use all of its political means to stop the Indo-Pacific from becoming a theater of war as a middle-class nation that has adhered to its non-alignment theory in the face of growing conflict between the US and China.
Ironically, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese decided at the last minute to skip the summit, properly demoting its importance to Canberra. In a media interview, Albanese saw Australia’s cooperation as useless, saying,” as an observer state, we’re no it. When that occurs, we’re not in the area with the Nato users.
The American defense secretary is there in Albanese’s place, while leaders from Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea also attended the conference. While the four Indo-Pacific states may not be users, they have an identity as” IP-4″ in Nato files. With Albanese’s lack, make that” IP-3.5″.
As it stands, there are already too many defense relationships and contracts muddying Indo-Pacific lakes. Nearly all of them aim to prevent China’s growing power and influence in the area and beyond, with Beijing posing as the biggest danger to their safety and interests in several nations both inside and outside the region. These include the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue ( Quad ) involving Australia, India, Japan and the US, the Aukus security partnership involving Australia, the United Kingdom and US, the recent Japan-Philippines-US trilateral summit as well as a plethora of old and new bilateral pacts, the latest one signed last week between Japan and the Philippines.
Many nations have developed their own Indo-Pacific plan, including those like the 27 European Union members who do not border the region’s two oceans, which include the South China Sea, the region’s most contentious region.
This region wo n’t be any safer with the addition of Nato. Allies should be made aware that Ukraine’s protracted conflict will result in its development. Nato’s rapid rise into Eastern Europe sparked Russia’s invasion of its massive southerly neighbor in 2022. A big power like Russia ca n’t stop it from envading a sovereign nation when it feels threatened, but who can stop it from doing so?
More than two years later, the conflict is also raging with devastating effects on many other nations around the world in terms of financial disturbance, influx of refugees, and budget paying for Nato people. Who can prevent China, a bigger strength than Russia, from acting in response to any real or perceived dangers that threaten its security interests?
There are already so many potential hot conflict zones in the Indo-Pacific, including the tensions in the Taiwan Strait and Beijing’s tense relations with some of the nations that border Southeast Asia. Nato’s entry into the area wo n’t be beneficial. Its expansion simply makes matters worse for the situation, and it only makes matters worse for its members on both sides of the Atlantic, who will gladly support any Indo-Pacific nation in stress in a war with China, simply as they will assist Ukraine in helping Russia battle its war with Russia.
China and Russia conducted a joint naval guard in the Philippine Sea this week in the latest twist in the South China Sea, an area where Beijing and Manila have recently been engaged in more territorially sensitive disputes. There are still many options if the goal is to contain or deter China, if the game’s title is China’s containment or deterrent.
The political lessons is not yet complete, but it will help to lessen the tension. Indonesia may step in at this point. However, there is not much we can hope from Asean to achieve in developing a united front, as some users are aligning with the US and people with China in the fierce energy conflict.
Non-aligned Indonesia also enjoys the advantages of being a middle strength, including the control of crucial sea-lanes of conversation in the South China Sea. Indonesia has a better chance of defusing the pressure by acting independently than through Asean, which may include rejecting Nato’s growth into this region of the world. — The Jakarta Post/ANN
Endy Bayuni is The Jakarta Post’s top editor.