The Gaza war resonated deeply among Southeast Asian respondents in a recent survey, given the significant proportion of Muslims in the region.
President Yoon has touted his new Indo-Pacific policy and the Korean-Asean Solidarity Initiative as a key step to elevate Seoul’s strategic role in the region and become a ‘global pivotal state’.
There were some achievements at the meeting in Cambodia, a key event taking place just before the G20 and Apec summits.
As individual member states rush to reopen their borders amid the pandemic, Asean has again been found to be not up to the job.