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ndonesia faces increasing pressure to step up its efforts to unite ASEAN on the forthcoming establishment of an inclusive Indo-Pacific region, as concerns grow that the absence of a singular ASEAN voice would allow for more great-power contestation.

During a recent discussion hosted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), former Indonesian diplomat Wiryono Sastrohandoyo called on ASEAN to maintain one voice in facing today’s global challenges, so it may emerge as a central power in the Indo-Pacific region.

He argued that ASEAN’s voice was “scattered” and that it made the regional grouping look weak, as the diverging views of its member states would prevent it from emerging as a major power in the Indo-Pacific.

“ASEAN has to play a role but it is not in a position to play that role. Its centrality is only geographic — the power is not there,” Wiryono said in Jakarta on Friday.

ASEAN member states nowadays tend to show signs of aligning with particular countries, a far cry from the united front it had showcased in 1967 when the bloc was first established, said the former envoy to the United Nations.

Wirjono said ASEAN had no choice but to face the major powers in the Indo-Pacific, namely China with its trillion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the United States with its Quadrilateral Security Dialogue alongside India, Japan and Australia.

To make ASEAN a central power not only geographically but also with regard to influence, he urged Jakarta to actively encourage unity within ASEAN and promote peace in the vast region.

“Our ‘independent and active’ foreign policy prevents us from choosing one party [over the other]. So we must continue to strengthen peace and avoid [competing interests] between the Quad and the BRI, and this requires a brilliant concept,” said Wiryono, who also served as ambassador to Australia.

Underpinning the urgency of Wiryono’s appeal is the perception that the US and China are on a collision course in the Indo-Pacific region. According to a survey conducted by the Singapore-based Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), about three out of four Southeast Asians believe China seeks to take on the mantle of leadership in response to the US’ growing indifference in the region. Experts say this contest is spilling over into the Indo-Pacific context.

The Indo-Pacific is an evolving concept for a regional order straddling the Indian and Pacific oceans, interpretations of which vary depending on the interests of countries in the region.

For instance, the US aspires to a regional order that, in its expression, underscores the prevailing power dynamics and aims at hedging against China, experts say.

India recently held talks with Japan and the US on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina, having agreed that a “free, open, inclusive and rules-based” order is essential for the Indo-Pacific’s peace and prosperity.

ASEAN foreign ministers are scheduled for a retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand later in January and will have the opportunity to deliberate on ASEAN’s vision for the Indo-Pacific.

Indonesia, as one of the most active proponents of an inclusive Indo-Pacific, has been in talks with ASEAN dialogue partners, including China, to establish an order based on multilateralism.

Meanwhile, Deborah W. Nutter from Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy said that an Indo-Pacific concept prioritizing multilateralism was a welcome decision, and that ASEAN’s concept would play an important role in a region bound to become a new flashpoint in geopolitics.

“This concept will also encourage open economic and political relations,” Nutter said on Friday.