HONG KONG, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- In 2025, the Asia-Pacific region faced a series of security challenges, ranging from recurring border conflicts, aggressive political rhetoric to domestic unrest in several countries.
Despite these challenges, regional countries continue to express a shared commitment to peace and development, highlighting that dialogue and cooperation remain the path to lasting stability in the Asia-Pacific.
PERSISTENT BORDER TENSIONS
Throughout the year, border conflicts involving Thailand and Cambodia, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and India and Pakistan have remained among the most prominent security flashpoints in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Thailand-Cambodia border clashes, rooted in long-standing territorial disputes dating back to the colonial era, flared up again after military confrontations in border areas that began in late May.
On Oct. 26, during the ASEAN summit held in Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia signed a joint peace declaration. However, less than two months later, violent border clashes broke out again in December.
According to data released by both sides, two rounds of clashes so far have left dozens of people dead, with over 700,000 people evacuated to safety.
"The immediate priority is to halt the fighting, safeguard civilians and return to a diplomatic path supported by international law and the neighborly spirit on which ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) depends," said Anwar Ibrahim, prime minister of Malaysia, the 2025 ASEAN chair, following the renewed conflict.
It is hoped that ASEAN, in coordination with China as a key dialogue partner, can facilitate a mutually acceptable peace proposal that contributes to the early resolution of the dispute, said Humprey Arnaldo Russel, head of the ASEAN-China Research Center of the University of Indonesia.
In South Asia, tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan has been high since October, when deadly border clashes killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants, and wounded hundreds on both sides.
The October clashes ended with a ceasefire brokered by Qatar and Türkiye. But several subsequent rounds of talks in the Middle East have failed to produce a lasting deal.
Despite periodic escalations, both countries demonstrate an awareness that prolonged instability undermines domestic security and regional economic integration, highlighting the necessity of sustained diplomatic engagement, remarked Shair Ahmad Hashmat, an Afghan scholar.
In the region, relations between India and Pakistan also experienced renewed strain in 2025, following a deadly attack on tourists that killed 26 people in a popular destination in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. The two countries exchanged military strikes before agreeing to a ceasefire in May.
Any further military action could entail unacceptable risks, Praveen Donthi, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said.
AGGRESSIVE POLITICAL REMARKS SPARK SECURITY CONCERNS
In East Asia, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks on China's Taiwan drew worldwide criticism for reviving militarism and threatening regional stability.
At a Diet (Japanese parliament) meeting on Nov. 7, Takaichi cited the so-called "survival-threatening situation" -- a trigger designed by the controversial 2015 law -- and linked it to the Taiwan question, suggesting Tokyo might treat the Taiwan question as grounds for military involvement under the legislation.
Despite repeated representations from China, Takaichi has refused to repent for her blatant and provocative rhetoric.
Takaichi's remarks revealed a worrying tendency of militarism in Japan and were extremely dangerous, which were unacceptable and should be withdrawn, warned Keio University Professor Emeritus Hiroshi Onishi.
In recent years, Japan has reshaped its security policy, boosting defense spending, easing arms-export restrictions, pursuing offensive weapons development, and moving further down a troubling path of military expansion.
Valery Kistanov, a Japan expert at the Russian Academy of Science, warned Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan could heighten regional tensions and risk triggering conflict.
Takaichi's erroneous remarks are very destabilizing and undermine the security of the entire region, Australian Citizens Party's National Chairman Robert Barwick said.
Julia Roknifard, a senior lecturer at Taylor's University in Malaysia, urged Japan to focus on its domestic socio-economic challenges rather than becoming a source of instability in East Asia.
DOMESTIC UNREST HIGHLIGHTS URGENCY OF STABILITY, DEVELOPMENT
Domestic instability in several South Asian and Southeast Asian countries added another layer of complexity to regional security in 2025. Protests in Nepal, Indonesia and the Philippines resulted in casualties, property damage and economic disruptions.
In Nepal, protests against a ban on unregistered major social media platforms, coupled with long-simmering anger over corruption, escalated on Sept. 8.
The World Bank has slashed Nepal's economic growth projection to 2.1 percent for the current 2025-26 fiscal year, citing recent unrest and heightened political and economic uncertainty.
In Indonesia, anti-corruption protests that began in late August spread across the country. In several cities, unrest escalated as demonstrators set fire to regional parliament buildings and police headquarters, while public infrastructure was damaged.
After Sept. 1, large-scale demonstrations across Indonesia largely subsided. Addressing public concerns, the government has launched a new round of political reforms while strengthening international cooperation to attract foreign investment, advancing industrial policies, and creating more jobs.
In the Philippines, thousands of people took to the streets in capital Manila and other parts of the country to voice their outrage over widespread corruption in September.
At least one person died during the protest and over 200 individuals were arrested, Philippine authorities said.
The Philippines' chief economist, Arsenio Balisacan, said that the country's economy is expected to slow down in the second half of 2025, partly due to the corruption scandals.
Bishnu Pukar Shrestha, a former diplomat from Nepal, pointed out that countries in the region must be stable themselves before the Asia-Pacific can move toward a more secure and predictable regional framework.
PEACE, DEVELOPMENT REMAIN SHARED ASPIRATIONS
Whether in managing border disputes, opposing aggressive political rhetoric, or addressing domestic unrest, regional countries have emphasized peace and development as the most reliable path toward prosperity in the Asia-Pacific.
To effectively resolve regional conflicts, there should be a more robust and enforceable regional security mechanism, noted Oh Ei Sun, principal adviser for Malaysia's Pacific Research Center.
Kin Phea, director general of the International Relations Institute of Cambodia, a think tank under the Royal Academy of Cambodia, called for the establishment of a rules-based regional order that unequivocally rejects the threat or use of force in resolving disputes.
A sustainable regional security architecture requires inclusive multilateralism, respect for sovereignty, and peaceful dispute resolution, according to Afghan scholar Hashmat.
Inclusive prosperity and shared development constitute the foundation of enduring peace and security in the Asia-Pacific, ensuring that no state or society is left behind in the pursuit of sustainable regional progress, Russel said.
To maintain a more stable regional order, the Indonesian expert stressed that the consolidation of regional cooperation institutions, including ASEAN, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, remains imperative.
The region's stability increasingly depends on preventing miscalculation and building practical crisis-response tools, not just issuing political statements, said Eng Kok Thay, a secretary of state of Cambodia's Council of Ministers.
A stable and peaceful Asia-Pacific will contribute not only to regional prosperity but also to global security, Hashmat stressed. ■