“Australia is not a Southeast Asian country, but it should be a very close partner of ASEAN, especially in an age where small and medium-sized powers need to work together more than ever,” said Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday.
Speaking during the 2026 ABC Boyer Lecture Series on Nov. 8, Mr. Lee argued that Australia must deepen its economic, security, and people-to-people ties across Southeast Asia to bolster its competitiveness and resilience in an increasingly fragmented world, channelnewsasia.com reported.
Countries Advancing Ties with US and Self-Reliance
The global environment has undergone a significant transformation, marked by intensifying great power rivalry and a fracturing multilateral system, according to Mr. Lee. He described the United States as the erstwhile anchor of the global order while noting that Washington is actively reassessing its global role regarding security and trade.
Concurrently, China’s growing strategic and economic weight is felt acutely across other nations. Mr. Lee pointed out that countries are actively figuring out how to advance ties with the U.S. while simultaneously pursuing self-reliance to protect their strategic interests. However, he emphasized that self-reliance requires complementary partnerships, citing the recent warming of historically difficult relations between South Korea and Japan.
The publication noted that Mr. Lee stressed that geography does not change and that countries neglect their immediate neighborhoods at their own cost. He observed that Australia’s regional partners beyond New Zealand reside in Asia, meaning deeper relationships across the region yield more room for Canberra to pursue its own interests.
Australian Businesses Finding Synergies with ASEAN
While Australia maintains substantial and growing trade with Southeast Asia, its investment footprint in the region remains notably modest. Mr. Lee highlighted that ASEAN represents the world’s fifth-largest economy—a market comprising 700 million people alongside a growing middle class—yet Australia invests no more across all ASEAN countries combined than it does in New Zealand.
To bridge this gap, Australian businesses could find strong synergies with Southeast Asian firms across critical minerals, agribusiness, renewable energy, and digital and deep technology. Mr. Lee noted that such investments help strengthen supply chains and corporate competitiveness. The Singaporean official pointed to Canberra’s historical role in establishing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership as proof of its capacity to build practical regional mechanisms.
Mr. Lee cited a recent Singapore-Australia agreement designed to keep essential supplies like diesel, petrol, and natural gas flowing during disruptions as a template that could eventually extend to food supplies.
Maintaining Defense Channels and Managing Rivalries
On security matters, Mr. Lee urged Australia to maintain an active presence in Asia and enhance partnerships with like-minded nations. Regarding nations with more complicated ties, he encouraged maintaining pragmatic working arrangements and stable communication channels between armed forces to prevent mishaps and miscalculations.
“It is impossible to keep major power rivalries entirely out of the region,” Mr. Lee stated during the lecture. “But it is possible for countries to work together to manage the rivalries and avoid miscalculations and mishaps.”
He added that Australia possesses the diplomatic weight and longstanding regional relationships required to bring nations together on pressing issues like trade, pandemic preparedness, and climate change.
People-to-People Ties and Societal Integration
Beyond economics and defense, the address emphasized nurturing human connections. Mr. Lee pointed to historical and contemporary educational initiatives, such as the original Colombo Plan of 1951 and the New Colombo Plan introduced in 2014, which have successfully fostered lasting goodwill between Australia and Asia.
Highlighting demographic shifts, he noted that one-third of Australian residents were born overseas, including roughly 70,000 individuals from Singapore. Nevertheless, he cautioned that inflows require careful management regarding pace, integration, and community commitment to ensure citizens maintain a stake in their own society.
