Southeast Asian States Struggle to Address the War in Gaza

In the immediate days after Hamas’s brutal attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Southeast Asian states close to Israel stood behind it, while others kept to the standard Southeast Asian practice of trying to avoid commenting on most major events. Singapore, as I previously noted, has long had tight links to Israel and strongly condemned Hamas’s actions. In contrast, historically neutral states like Thailand (which had some of its citizens kidnapped by Hamas) issued statements like one from Deputy Foreign Minister Jakkapong Sangmanee, who stated, “Thailand’s stance towards the deadly Hamas-led attack against Israel is one of neutrality, and the Kingdom promotes a solution that would allow Palestine and Israel to coexist.” The region’s Muslim-majority states, Indonesia and Malaysia, took tougher stances, warning about the escalation of conflict and Israel’s potential response to the attack.

Now, more than five months later, and after a war in Gaza that the United Nations has now said has made Gaza the most dangerous place in the world for children, while Israel says that further incursions are necessary to root out Hamas, much of Southeast Asia has turned more sharply against Israel, with real-world complications for Israeli business, tourism, and diplomacy in the region. For more on how Southeast Asian states are now responding to the Israel-Hamas war and the implications of their actions, see my new World Politics Review article.