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Malaysia’s regional influence has grown but others, in particular Thailand, continue to be domestically preoccupied.
Southeast Asia’s winners and losersSoutheast Asia’s winners and losers
About the authors
Susannah Patton is Director, Asia Engagement at RMIT and a Nonresident fellow at the Lowy Institute.
Jack Sato
Jack Sato is a Data Analyst for the Asia Power Index at the Lowy Institute.
Southeast Asia’s eleven countries mostly recorded small improvements in their comprehensive power in 2025.
The 2025 ASEAN chair Malaysia was the standout performer, overtaking Thailand to regain tenth place in the overall rankings of Asia Power Index countries. Under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who took office in 2022, Kuala Lumpur has been a more prominent international player, seeking BRICS membership, convening a new meeting between ASEAN, the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and China, and taking a vocal position on Middle East issues. Though some of Anwar’s approaches are controversial, experts surveyed for the Asia Power Index in 2025 were much more positive about his political leadership at both the global and regional levels than they were in 2024. Malaysia’s convening power, referring to the number of inbound visits it hosts from foreign ministers and leaders in Asia, grew strongly, even before it assumed the rotating chair of ASEAN, suggesting that although not all regional countries agree with Anwar’s approaches to international issues, they see value in engaging with his government.
By contrast, Thailand’s regional influence declined — in part a function of leadership churn: the country has had four prime ministers in just three years (see Indo-Pacific leadership vacuum on the impact of leadership change on other countries’ diplomatic influence). While Thailand’s cadence of international diplomacy remained strong despite these changes, it recorded big declines for regional and global leadership, likely reflecting negative expert opinion about its mismanagement of its relationship with Cambodia and subsequent border skirmishes that claimed more than 30 lives. Strikingly, Thailand now ranks just one place ahead of Cambodia for regional leadership, despite the latter’s much smaller size and more limited diplomatic resources.
On current trends, it is likely that Vietnam, currently ranked 12th but with strong positive momentum in its Asia Power Index scores, will overtake Thailand in the 2026 edition.
Indonesia, whose performance has improved steadily in the Asia Power Index in recent years, recorded a small lift in its comprehensive power, and it increased its diplomatic influence by one ranking, overtaking South Korea. Experts appraised new President Prabowo Subianto more positively for his global than his regional leadership, reflecting a perception that while he has sought partnerships with the broader Global South including through ties with Russia and BRICS membership, he is yet to announce a major diplomatic initiative focused on ASEAN or Indonesia’s own immediate neighbourhood.
