IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/jes/journl/y2025v16p223-244.html

ASEAN’s strategy within RCEP: managing protectionist policies of the second Trump administration

Author

Listed:
  • Yosua Saut Marulitua Gultom

    (Universitas Pembangunan Nasional Veteran Jakarta, Indonesia)

Abstract

This paper examines ASEAN's strategic response to the Trump administration's second round of protectionist trade policies. This paper analyzes how these policies deliberately undermine ASEAN's economic security, which depends on open and rules-based trade. Using a qualitative comparative framework, this study examines the strategic adaptations of Indonesia, Singapore, and Vietnam, selecting three ASEAN countries that have divergent economic profiles and trade structures with the United States. The study shows that although ASEAN members have adopted their own strategies, they attempt to reduce dependency on the United States through various means. This paper posits the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as a crucial tool to enhance long-term economic stability in the region. This requires ASEAN to strengthen intra-regional unity and implement measured and proactive policy changes to protect shared economic interests in an increasingly fragmented global trade.

Suggested Citation

  • Yosua Saut Marulitua Gultom, 2025. "ASEAN’s strategy within RCEP: managing protectionist policies of the second Trump administration," Eastern Journal of European Studies, Centre for European Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, vol. 16, pages 223-244, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:jes:journl:y:2025:v:16:p:223-244
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.47743/ejes-2025-SI12
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ejes.uaic.ro/articles/EJES2025_16SI_12_GUL.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/https://doi.org/10.47743/ejes-2025-SI12?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:jes:journl:y:2025:v:16:p:223-244. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Alupului Ciprian (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/csjesro.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.