The sense of deja vu at last week's annual Asean foreign ministers meeting in Singapore regarding progress on the code of conduct in the South China Sea -- an agreement with China on a single draft for future negotiations -- is an ominous sign that the regional grouping is already at the centre of US-China rivalry.
Both superpowers are determined to cooperate, compete and confront -- not necessarily in that order -- whenever they deem such approaches are warranted, using the familiar battlefield of Southeast Asia, snugly situated at the crossroads of the Indo-Pacific.
Lest we forget, the two clashed during the Cold War over ideological differences. After the Berlin Wall collapsed, the region managed to survive in one piece -- enemies turned friends -- and has since then enjoyed stable economic development that has helped to transform the 10 Asean countries into an economic powerhouse of 645 million people.
