Lecture Abstract:

After the collapse of the Berlin Wall, the global community had looked forward to reaping the dividends of peace that was to be signified by a sustained period of stability and security. The end of the Cold War was to usher in a new phase of détente where the superpowers were expected to keep in abeyance their military build-up in order to fully harness the benefit of economic cooperation and progress. But barely three decades later, the world is witnessing the resurgence of Russia with her interventionist geo-political stance towards the U.S. and NATO, and the reawakening of the Chinese dragon, on her way to becoming the world’s largest economy, with a dramatically increased military expenditure to boot while flexing her naval muscles in the South China Sea. Meanwhile, India as a new economic powerhouse and the world’s most populous country is said to be the leading representative for democracy in the Asian Century. How is ASEAN to position itself in this new geo-political and strategic environment? What centrifugal forces may operate that could adversely affect the security and prosperity of half a billion people remain to be seen. What imperatives are there knocking on ASEAN’s door that need to be addressed collectively in facing this new century?

About the Speaker:

Y.A.B. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Azmin Bin Ali is the Chief Minister of Selangor and the Deputy President of the People’s Justice Party. He was appointed as a Special Officer to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who was then the Minister of Education. He was promoted to Private Secretary to the Minister of Education, and then remained as Anwar’s Private Secretary in his later capacity as Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister.

Y.A.B. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Azmin is a founding member of the National Justice Party, later renamed the People’s Justice Party (PKR). In the 10th General Elections (1999), Azmin was elected as a Member of Selangor Legislative Assembly in the Hulu Kelang constituency. He was re-elected in the 12th General Elections (2008) and in the 13th General Elections (2013) in the Bukit Antarabangsa constituency. Y.A.B. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Azmin has served three terms as a Member of the Selangor Legislative Assembly. He was successfully elected as Member of Parliament for two terms since 2008.