After decades of peaceful economic cooperation, a tectonic geopolitical shift starting with a low-boil US-China trade war four years ago has now developed into moves to decouple the world’s two largest economies, amid calls for “China containment”.

In this region, if the results of the latest ISEAS State of South-east Asia survey are anything to go by, concerns over China are accentuated while India is being seen in a more favourable light. The annual survey of the region’s thought leaders takes a pulse on South-east Asia’s responses to the rapidly changing geopolitical environment and Asean’s views of its major partners.