ASEAN FORUM 2016
2.00pm – 5.00pm, Friday 7 October 2016
Law Foyer, Level 2, Sydney Law School, University of Sydney
Free event; online registration required
Co-hosted by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre and China Studies Centre
China is an emerging political superpower with a large population, rapid economic growth and increasing military spending. At the same time, the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) is moving towards greater economic integration through the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), hoping that integration will boost markets and attract increased investment to the region. While ASEAN’s integration is an ongoing process, the economic relationship between China and the AEC has been formalised through the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area agreement. At the same time, tensions have arisen between China and a number of Southeast Asia states due to competing claims for islands in the South China Sea.
The 2016 ASEAN Forum co-hosted by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre and China Studies Centre will explore the various convergences of these two political entities, shedding light on how China is shaping political, economic and cultural aspects of life for those in ASEAN. The forum will invite speakers from across the region to provide assessments of how China is engaging in Southeast Asia, and what this means for the future of the region as a whole. The forum will focus on three main themes that lie at the heart of the ASEAN-China relationship: Security, Economic Diplomacy, and Chinese Chinese diasporas in Southeast Asia.
http://sydney.edu.au/southeast-asia-centre/events/asean-forum-home.shtml