Asean Alertness Needed to Possible 2nd Pacific War : Observer

Rabu, 20 Oktober 2010 19:21 WIB

Makassar (ANTARA News) - An Indonesian observer said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) needs to be alert over the possibility of a second Pacific War breaking out.

Prof Ikrar Nusa Bhakti from the Indonesia Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said here on Wednesday in view of that the ASEAN Security Community had to be able to stabilize conditions in international relations in East Asia including Australia.

"At an Asia-Pacific level it is very clear that the US hegemony has been declining to make a number of Asia Pacific countries such as China, India and Australia to strengthen their defense capability," he said.

He said Australia in its Defense White Book in 2009 had even signalled its readiness to build a defense power for the possibilities of a second Asia-Pacific war in 2030.

Those countries have had strategic development plans for building their military capabilities and tend to buy military hardware for offensive purposes such as aircraft carriers, submarines, destroyers and fighter aircraft.

"So if the ASEAN Security Community is not ready for blocking the potentials it was not impossible that the worst scenario would really happen," he said.

He said this was the consequence of a change into a new world's architecture.

Ikrar said ASEAN seems still too slow to start discussing traditional security issues due to historical factors and international cooperation development.

ASEAN is still striving to develop three communities namely security, economic and social and cultural communities and another one namely the East Asia Summit.

"The heavy task now is how Indonesia as the ASEAN's spearhead could invite other members to realize the ideals for the establishment of the communities which would eventually be able to prevent the second Pacific war," he said.

He said ASEAN could also become the steering leader in various summits of the East Asia region which is not controlled by three big countries outside East Asia. (HAJM/a014)