Eurasia News

  A  renowned ancient Hindu temple built during the first half of the 11th century, the Preah Vihear Temple atop the Dângrêk Mountains is characterized by steep staircases, carved lintels, and intricate bas-reliefs depicting Hindu deities and mythological scenes. The magnificent architecture not only reflects the Hindu religious influence that was prominent in the Khmer Empire but also persists as the crucible of longstanding border disputes between Cambodia and Thailand . On July 24, 2025, the wrangles between the two Southeast Asian nations came to a head as deadly clashes erupted, with both sides fingering each other for initiating the assault. No sooner, global media flooded the information sphere, with some parroting that it was Thailand who struck first, and others contending that it was Cambodia who had opened the first fire. Not to be left behind, experts on ASEAN —but not from ASEAN—followed suit, hailing 1960 as the start of the dispute. As someone born in Sout...

  The future of European security depends on recognizing that cooperative security is the only sustainable approach to preventing conflict. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) provides a ready-made framework for de-escalation, but it has remained underutilized in favour of North-Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s (NATO) threat-based security architecture. The result has been perpetual security dilemmas, particularly in Eastern Europe, where NATO expansion has triggered counter-reactions from Russia. By contrast, t he Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ ( ASEAN ) diplomatic model, heavily influenced by the Helsinki Process (1972-1975), has managed to prevent a security dilemma in Southeast Asia—despite the existence of major territorial disputes in the South China Sea.  Rather than following the European pattern of securitizing every conflict, ASEAN has institutionalized a culture of trust and mutual accommodation among elites, leading to the avoi...