This comes as Malaysia assumes leadership of the ASEAN intergovernmental organisation. 

The great power rivalry between China, Russia, and the US is affecting regional stability in Asia and the Indo-Pacific, it was announced at DSEI Japan 2025.

Speaking at the event about the issue, the Chairman of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies of Malaysia, Datuk Professor Dr Mohd Faiz Abdullah, pointed to a recent Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) as an example.

“The major powers boycotted an [ADMM-Plus] experts group session” because it was discussing Russia, he said.

ADMM-Plus is a forum for peace and security dialogue between ASEAN members and global partners, such as Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the US.

These great powers, including the US, are also conducting “mini laterals”, which they claim are for “global governance, but it’s about containment really”.

This is “not conducive to peace and stability”, as they add further pressure, conflict and rivalries, Abdullah stressed.

For Asia, it is hard to counter and mitigate this, because they are allying with different powers – “it’s a zero-sum game”.

This rivalry is not just affecting Asia, but “international affairs at all levels”, he acknowledged. 

He concluded by describing the current world order as entering a period of “unfettered competition...where a lot of parties are going for the killing zone”.

Olivia Savage, Editor in Chief of Clarion Defence & Security