Singapore's prime minister warned that "Islamic State" posed a "very real" threat to Southeast Asia. Lee Hsien Loong said although IS had been defeated in Iraq and Syria, the group continued to threaten the region.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. Rahman
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Lee Hsien Loong's warning came on Saturday during his opening address at the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Singapore. The prime minister also said the ASEAN region could be increasingly targeted by hackers. The bloc has been working to tackle threats from extremism and cyber attackers.
Prime Minister Lee said:
The region's move towards digitalization has made it more vulnerable to cyberattacks.
"We need to be resilient to both conventional threats and also non-conventional threats such as terrorism and cyberattacks."
"The political mood in many countries has shifted against free trade."
ASEAN countries at a glance
Five decades ago, ASEAN came to life, bringing together an array of ethnic, religious and linguistic groups. The bloc now has over 600 million inhabitants. Here's a look at the various member countries.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Rahim
Symbolizing unity
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. Since its founding, the bloc has emerged as a beacon of unity in Southeast Asia, although it has often struggled to find consensus among members over key policy issues affecting the region's politics, security and the economy, among other things.
Image: Reuters/E. de Castro
Brunei
The Sultanate of Brunei, located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, is one of the richest nations in the world. The small, oil-rich country is governed by its sultan as an absolute Muslim monarchy. Islam is the official religion in Brunei, with Sunni Muslims making up about 70 percent of the population. The sultan also sees himself as the main custodian of religious beliefs in Brunei.
Image: Fotolia
Cambodia
Cambodia joined the ASEAN grouping in 1999, and during the past ten years, the Cambodian economy has grown by at least 7 percent year after year. That makes it one of the fastest growing economies in the world. But the unequal distribution of wealth and income is a problem, with many of the nation's around 16-million strong population stuck in abject poverty, especially in rural areas.
Image: Erik Jan Ouwerkerk
Indonesia
Indonesia plays a salient role in ASEAN due to its status as the bloc's most populous member state as well as the world's most populous Muslim nation, with over 250 million inhabitants. The ASEAN secretariat is also based in the country's capital, Jakarta. Indonesia, which comprises around 17,000 islands, is the world's largest archipelago nation and boasts Southeast Asia's biggest economy.
Image: A Brit and a Broad
Laos
Laos became a member of the ASEAN bloc in 1997. The country has a population of around 6.5 million. Around 80 percent of the inhabitants of the poor, landlocked and isolated communist country depend upon farming for their livelihood. That's how they subsist and feed their families. Laos has an increasingly close relationship with China.
Image: Imago/J. Langley
Malaysia
A founding member of ASEAN, Malaysia has the club's third-largest economy. Religion and politics are sensitive issues in Malaysian politics, with the deadly sectarian riots of 1969 often cited as the need to maintain ethnic harmony in the country. Over 60 percent of Malaysia's 30 million inhabitants are Muslim, with the rest adhering to Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, and other religions.
Image: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images
Myanmar
Myanmar, which joined the club in 1997, was ruled for decades by a military junta that left it impoverished. The party of Aung San Suu Kyi, the nation's democracy icon, won the first fully free elections for generations, held in 2015. But authorities are struggling to tackle a powerful Buddhist nationalist movement that has grown in strength in recent years and favors the former military rulers.
Image: AFP/Getty Images
The Philippines
The Philippines, an archipelago nation consisting of thousands of islands, is one of the most disaster-prone areas in the world. The country has has a population of over 100 million, and one of the fastest expanding economies. But it has suffered major environmental degradation in recent years due to reasons such as mismanagement of resources, deforestation and high population growth.
Image: Imago/M. Runkel
Singapore
The wealthy city-state has been a member of ASEAN since the bloc's founding in 1967. The country has a thriving economy, which has grown at a rapid pace since independence, underpinned by its position as a global financial hub. Densely populated Singapore has a multi-racial citizenry as well as tough laws against protests and curbs on press freedom.
Image: picture-alliance/robertharding/A. Hall
Thailand
Thailand's politics have been characterized by a long series of coups, with the nation's military frequently ousting democratically elected governments. The 2014 coup marked the 12th successful military takeover since Thailand embraced parliamentary democracy 85 years ago. The country boasts Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy and the reputation of being an attractive tourist destination.
Image: DW/S. Bandopadhyay
Vietnam
Vietnam has been ruled by a one-party communist state since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Since 1986, Vietnam has introduced sweeping market reforms to boost growth and development. But the ruling party doesn't permit criticism and the country is ranked among the worst for press freedom. Vietnam joined ASEAN in 1995.
Image: AFP/Getty Images
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Looming trade war
Lee also expressed concern over a mounting trade dispute between the United States and China that has seen both countries impose tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars' worth of goods. Analysts have said the situation could escalate into a global trade war. Washington has threatened to impose tariffs on up to $150 billion (€123 billion) of Chinese imports.
Korean Peninsula: The ASEAN leaders welcomed Friday's historic summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea's President Moon Jae-in as a first step toward reducing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
What's next? Lee said ASEAN plans to conclude negotiations this year on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership — a proposed free trade agreement between ASEAN members and Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand — to fight protectionism.
US President Donald Trump has a knack for making incendiary remarks, some of which have grazed the subject of China. From accusing Beijing of "rape" to claiming "I love China," Trump's comments span a wide spectrum.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Harnik
'I love China'
US President Donald Trump is known for his polarizing statements, not least when it comes to China. Shortly after announcing his presidential bid in 2016, Trump told an American broadcaster: "I love China." But his remarks regarding Beijing haven't always been so positive. DW examines the best quotes uttered by the US president concerning the People's Republic of China.
Image: picture-alliance/AP/A. Harnik
'China is raping our country'
Trump has used particularly strong language to describe US-China relations."We can't continue to allow China to rape our country, and that's what they're doing. It's the greatest theft in the history of the world," he told a rally during his presidential campaign. In 2011, Trump claimed "China is raping this country" during a tour of a defense manufacturer in New Hampshire, local media reported.
Image: Feng Li/AFP/GettyImages
'Korea actually used to be a part of China'
"He then went into the history of China and Korea. Not North Korea, Korea. And you know, you’re talking about thousands of years ... and many wars. And Korea actually used to be a part of China," Trump told the Wall Street Journal in April after meeting China's Xi Jinping. The remark prompted concern in South Korea, prompting China's foreign ministry to say: "There is nothing ... to worry about."
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/N. H. Guan
'Just take them to McDonald's'
For Trump, fast food might be enough. "I beat the people from China. I win against China. You can win against China if you're smart. But our people don't have a clue. We give state dinners to the heads of China. I said, 'why are you doing state dinners for them? They're ripping us left and right. Just take them to McDonald's and go back to the negotiating table,'" Trump said at a 2015 rally.
In a fabled 2011 interview with China's state broadcaster Xinhua, Trump allegedly rattled off 20 books he'd read about China. "I've read hundreds of books about China over the decades. I know the Chinese. I've made a lot of money with the Chinese. I understand the Chinese mind," he allegedly said. But some have said the interview never happened. The only evidence survives on an LA Times blog post.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Harnik
'Global warming was created by' China
Trump has often taken to his preferred social media platform to declare foreign policy objectives and decry his apparent foes. In 2012, he tackled the subject of climate change by accusing Beijing of fabricating the idea to hurt US economic interests. "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive," Trump said.