Uphold the path of peace and security

The annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), has been central to Asian security diplomacy for two decades. The dialogue's cancellation in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic was an unfortunate development for regional security interaction because it interrupted a useful process undertaken at this gathering of government, defence and other representatives to discuss the region's most pressing security challenges, engage in frank bilateral talks, and seek to come up with fresh approaches and solutions to issues.

Those challenges today are clear. The tussle for supremacy between the United States and China, a contest that is the determining motif of the 21st century, has been complicated by Russia's war on Ukraine. If the invasion fully succeeds, Russia would stand as the third great power in a tripolar world. But if Moscow fails, the Ukraine war could expand the role of the US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation in Europe and, some fear, foretell its expansion into Asia in some form.