Inter-regional Geopolitics Lab: How to Navigate a Three-Theatre Conflict World

As Pax Americana, the era of the U.S.-led international order, comes under growing strain, wars are raging in Europe and the Middle East, while tensions continue in East Asia. For middle and smaller powers, a pressing question is how to respond without being pulled into great-power rivalries.

At the FES Asia Interregional Lab, decision-makers and strategic advisers from more than 20 countries explored how governments can strengthen their security, regain agency and create more room to act. Facilitated by the Executive Education team of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, the dialogue also explored “Partnerships in the Middle”, closer cooperation among middle powers to build collective influence in a more contested world.

In this interview series, experts from Indonesia, Germany, India, Mongolia, Vietnam and the Philippines answer two key questions:

What are the strategic implications of conflicts across the three main geopolitical arenas, Europe, the Middle East and East Asia, for their countries?

And can “Partnerships in the Middle” help them regain agency despite great-power coercion?

Watch the interviews to see how different countries assess the pressures they face and the strategic choices ahead.