MORE OR LESS US ENGAGEMENT UNDER TRUMP?
The State of Southeast Asia 2025 survey polled 2,023 people including researchers, private sector representatives, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and government officials across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Brunei, Myanmar, and the Philippines.
For the first time in its seven editions, the survey – which gauges views on geopolitical developments and issues affecting the region – included perspectives from Timor-Leste, which has observer status pending formal admission to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). But Timor-Leste’s responses were not used to calculate average figures for ASEAN in the survey.
The survey was conducted both online and offline between Jan 3 and Feb 15, with just under half the responses garnered before Trump took office, and the remainder after. There were “no discernible differences” in results recorded in the two periods, said ISEAS.
Asked about the level of US engagement with Southeast Asia under Trump 2.0, about four in 10 survey respondents (40.7 per cent) felt it would increase, or increase significantly this year.
Among those who felt this way, more than a-third (38.7 per cent) said Trump’s tough stance on China would help maintain a balance of power in the region. This sentiment is mostly shared by Laos (45.8 per cent), Singapore (43.9 per cent) and Myanmar (43 per cent).
