The US-China Competition in Southeast Asia from the Perspective of Offensive Realism

In the aftermath of the Cold War, the international order has undergone profound transformation with China’s rapid rise posing a challenge to the US hegemony. The competition between these two great powers extends beyond the economic sphere into geopolitics, with Southeast Asia emerging as a focal point in their struggle for influence. From the perspective of offensive realism, John Mearsheimer argues that in the anarchic international system, great powers relentlessly seek to maximise their power to ensure security, making conflict inevitable. Employing the offensive realism approach, this study analyses the reasons why Southeast Asia has become entangled in US-China competition, examines the opportunities and challenges it faces, and assesses the responses of Southeast Asian countries in safeguarding their strategic interests.