Open figure viewer
Significance
Amid an increasingly uncertain global economic landscape, ASEAN leaders are prioritising regional digital cooperation, particularly to safeguard and bolster critical supply chains. If and when enacted, the DEFA will become the world’s first comprehensive regional digital agreement.
Impacts
Each ASEAN country will need to ratify the DEFA before formally joining, likely slowing implementation.
In order to forge a regional digital framework, ASEAN will have to fix overlapping bilateral e-commerce agreements among its member states.
As the 2025 ASEAN chair, Malaysia will press China to help curtail internet scam centres across the region, particularly in Myanmar.
Keywords:
AP,
INT,
United States,
International,
ASEAN,
Indonesia,
Malaysia,
Philippines,
Singapore,
South-east Asia,
Thailand,
Brunei,
Cambodia,
Laos,
Myanmar,
Vietnam,
economy,
industry,
international relations,
artificial intelligence,
data,
digital,
foreign trade,
technology,
telecommunications,
regional,
IT software & services
© Oxford Analytica 2025. All rights reserved. This content contains general information about geopolitical, macroeconomic and social developments or (where stated) other matters. It does not contain advice or recommendations that may be relied on. Where links to external websites are provided, this does not indicate that Oxford Analytica or Emerald agree with, endorse or have checked for accuracy the contents of said sites.
2025
You do not currently have access to this content.
