Regional Security Development Trends of the Malacca Straight Countries in the Context of the Indo-Pacific Region in 2020s

Abstract

The Indo-Pacific region can be viewed as a neutral characteristic of the new political and strategic configuration of countries, which is emerging in the Asia-Pacific region, also as a concept which is focused on the maritime nation states of East and Southeast Asia. The states of the Pacific and Indian Ocean are “bridge-builders”, key actors in international relations in the establishment of economic, diplomatic, infrastructural areas, and in the strategic competition of numerous and diverse nations of the two oceans in an effort to ensure objective national interests by blurring old geographical boundaries. The Strait of Malacca is an important sea axis connecting the Indian Ocean with the South China Sea, providing a link between the Middle East, China, Japan, South Korea and the markets of Western countries. Understanding the trends in the development of foreign policy and national interests of the Strait of Malacca countries is even more important in the context of expanding the international agenda of the Russian Federation within the framework of bilateral and interregional cooperation, especially in the contex of the creation of a free trade zone between the EAEU and the Republic of Singapore. The study demonstrates an inverse relationship between the trend in the development of military spending in the countries of the Malacca Strait in relation to the trend in military spending in Southeast Asia. The exclusion of the Strait of Malacca countries from the general trend of development of the countries of Southeast Asia is proof of the construction of a new model of security architecture.