On April 29, 2015, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences hosted the next annual scientific inter-institute conference " Southeast Asia and the South Caucasus: actual problems of development", organized by the Center for Southeast Asia, Australia and Oceania of the Institute of International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The conference was attended by employees of various departments of the Institute of Information Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, scientists from a number of academic institutions, teachers and postgraduates of higher educational institutions in Moscow, and employees of practical organizations.

The conference focused on the region-wide political and economic problems of Southeast Asia, considered possible ways to solve them, ways of development of individual countries and their prospects within the region and within the world economic community.

Opening the conference, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors. E. V. Molodyakova, Director of the Institute of Information Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted the importance of the conference, the breadth of the topic of speeches that touch not only regional, but also global problems of development of the countries of the region.

The conference was held in three sections: "Towards the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference", "Key problems of regional development" and "Trends and prospects of political and socio-economic development of individual countries in the region".

The first section was opened with a report by V. V. Boitsov (MSU ISAA) "The spirit of Bandung and the practice of economic cooperation in the Southeast Asian region". He noted that one of the outcomes of the Bandung Conference in 1955 was the recognition of the need to promote the economic development of Asian and African countries and their economic cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit and respect for national sovereignty. In the Southeast Asian region, long-term attempts to create cooperation institutions culminated in the organization of the ASEAN integration group in 1967 and its subsequent expansion to the external borders of the region. This, along with other factors, was facilitated by the gradual recognition by all Southeast Asian countries of the provisions formulated in Bandung as the main principles of international relations and formed the basis of the ideology of their cooperation. In the early years, the efforts of its members were aimed at achieving political goals-strengthening peace and political stability in the region, which were considered as a condition for their successful socio-economic development and mutual economic cooperation. One of the features of the practice of economic cooperation between the countries of the region was the extension of the principles underlying their political cooperation to the economic sphere. The latter, stressed V. V. Boitsov, testifies to the viability and universality of the provisions put forward at the conference in Bandung sixty years ago.

Rogozhina G. N. (IMEMO RAS) in the report "The first principle of "Pancha sila" and modern slavery in Southeast Asia" noted that slavery, including human trafficking, still persists in the modern world. The presentation revealed the trends of this phenomenon in the Southeast Asian countries, provided statistics for individual countries of the region, and indicated the main reasons for the persistence of slavery in the modern world. Victims of slavery are mainly the poorest segments of the population (especially women and children), ethnic minorities and illegal migrants. The main forms of slavery are sexual exploitation, forced marriage, debt slavery, recruitment of children into the army, and forced labor in low-paid hazardous industries. This is supported by high unemployment, poverty, discrimination, gender inequality and corruption. Today, the proceeds of human trafficking occupy the third place after the sale of weapons and drugs, and, as N. Rogozhina emphasized, as long as the governments of Southeast Asian countries gradually support this phenomenon, any attempts to eradicate human trafficking will not bring the desired results.

A. A. Simonyi's report "From the Bandung Conference to the ASEAN Presidency: Myanmar's Long Road to a Resurgent Foreign Policy" focused on the difficult situation of Burma/Myanmar in the international arena between these important events. Four periods of foreign policy were identified, the common features of which were the principles of neutrality and non-alignment. In the first decade after independence, Burma pursued an active foreign policy. It was the first country after China and India to officially recognize the "pancha shila" - the five principles of peaceful coexistence of countries with different political systems. Together with India, Indonesia, Ceylon and Pakistan, Burma initiated the convening of the Bandung Conference in 1955. Further tendencies towards self-isolation and autarky led Burma to withdraw from the Non-Aligned Movement in September 1979. The military coup in 1988 coincided with the collapse of the bipolar world and the end of the Cold War. Under the new conditions, Myanmar's military leadership has abandoned self-isolation in favor of greater openness to the outside world. However, the complication of the internal political situation in the country led to its isolation from the West, which accused Myanmar of violating human rights and demanded democratic reforms. Myanmar's accession to ASEAN in 1997 meant a reorientation of its foreign policy towards developing partnership relations with its neighbors in the region and non-interference in each other's internal affairs. The culmination of Myanmar's return to big politics was the honorary right of the ASEAN Presidency. A. A. Simonia noted that the goal announced by the Government of Myanmar is to establish a "disciplined democracy", which is based on the idea of the possibility of different types of democracy.

The second section was opened with a presentation by Dmitry Mosyakov (IB RAS) entitled "Dilemmas of Chinese Politics in Southeast Asia". Four development paths that China can take in the near future were considered. The first involves China's entry into the ASEAN region through a free trade area by maintaining the ASEAN countries ' economic interest in closer cooperation. China is already taking active steps in this direction, but its desire to turn its economic influence in the region into a political one is more difficult. For their part, the ASEAN countries, fearing the possible political influence of China, are ready to go for economic cooperation at the level of a comprehensive economic partnership, in which Australia, India, New Zealand and Japan would also participate. This will allow the Southeast Asian countries to maneuver more successfully without remaining in the region alone with China, and significantly weaken the latter's position in the political arena of the region. However, it is extremely problematic to agree on all agreements on a free trade zone between all participating countries.

The second way, namely the Mekong project, which was implemented in 2007-2008, did not bring the expected results. All of China's efforts to build hydroelectric power stations and dams on the Mekong River have only led to extreme hostility on the part of the local population and increased distrust of China. The third option involves moving the Chinese population across borders (primarily in Burma and Laos) and gradually integrating the border areas into Greater China, but it also does not bring much success and only provokes a negative reaction from local residents. Finally, the last way for China to move into the region that is the most dangerous for ASEAN countries is through the South China Sea. This path is likely to lead to a split in ASEAN, since the interests and positions of the participating countries are very different and not everyone is ready to go to an open confrontation with China.

M. G. Lokshin (IDV RAS) in his report "The 40th anniversary of the victory in Vietnam, its significance and lessons" touched upon the current topic of the Saigon liberation that took place on April 30, 1975. He raised an important question: what was the war in South Vietnam - a war of two or three sides, or national liberation within one country? The answer to this fundamental question depends on the perception of this historical event by modern Vietnamese society and the attitude towards both the Saigon liberation and the country's leader Ho Chi Minh. Vietnamese society is divided at the national level, and although the policy of the Vietnamese communist government is aimed at national reconciliation, it is clear that the forty years that have passed since the liberation of Saigon are not enough for this reconciliation to be possible.

The report of A. A. Rogozhin (IMEMO RAS) "The ASEAN Economic Community-at the finish line" was devoted to the features of integration processes in the Southeast Asian region and the actual implementation of the economic principles laid down in the foundation of the ASEAN economic community. ASEAN at this stage is a rapidly developing grouping, which is due to certain principles of economic policy. First, the principles of intensive economic cooperation and pre-integration processes leading to real integration are used. Second, ASEAN positions itself as part of the global economy. This policy gives positive results. The ASEAN member states have successfully established a single market and production capacity.-

We have created a competitive economic region with a strong legislative and organizational base, and achieved balanced economic development with preferences for small and medium-sized businesses. Finally, the integration of ASEAN into the global economy, while falling short of its target dates, continues and will continue to increase.

N. B. Lebedeva (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) continued the topic with the report "ASEAN's Response to the Chinese Maritime Silk Road Initiative and the Indian Mausam Project" . She outlined the main directions of China's policy on the Maritime Silk Road project and touched upon the topic of ASEAN's response and response. Understanding China's political intentions and fearing its insistence, the ASEAN countries nevertheless see benefits for themselves in the SREB project, so states such as Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Bangladesh are more or less included in the project, and all of them have become members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The situation is more complicated with Vietnam and the Philippines, since these countries have the most claims against China, and therefore the latter makes small concessions in relation to these two countries.

China would also like to see India, which is a key power in both Asia and the Indian Ocean, participate in the SREB. On the one hand, like the Southeast Asian countries for their region, India has certain doubts about China's presence in the Indian Ocean, especially from a military point of view. On the other hand, India sees the benefits of the SREB, which meets its infrastructure and other interests, so India agreed to accelerate the construction of a corridor between it and China with the participation of Myanmar and Bangladesh, and also joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

Nevertheless, China's policy is holding India back and alarming it, so it has launched its own project "Mausam". However, India is technically and infrastructurally much weaker than China. What distinguishes India from China is that it is much less assertive: its policy does not cause such rejection among the local population of other countries in the region. N. B. Lebedeva suggested that it is possible to combine both projects, but in this case it remains an open question how the ASEAN countries will react to this, which are used to seeing India as an antagonist to China.

As part of the block" Issues of cooperation between Russia and ASEAN", the report of the correspondent of the newspaper" Podmoskovye segodnya " Andreev"Podmoskovye and South-East Asia: breakthrough projects, new prospects" finished the work of the section. The speaker described in detail the prospects of cooperation between China and enterprises located in the Moscow region, as well as the possibility of establishing and strengthening contacts with various Southeast Asian countries, such as Vietnam, Singapore and Thailand. On the Chinese side, there are three groups of companies that are considering working in the Moscow Region: those related to the automotive industry, software production, and construction. Vietnam has put forward a number of projects in agriculture (primarily in animal husbandry) and the textile industry. Recently, contacts between the Moscow Region and Singapore have intensified. Finally, the Thai business, which has been successfully developing in the Moscow region for a long time, plans to develop cooperation in the field of agriculture and the food industry.

A. P. Muranova's report "National Welfare funds of Southeast Asian countries" was devoted to their main characteristics, classification and investment activity.

The third section of the conference was opened with a report by A. Drugov (IB RAS )" Indonesia in 2014". The presentation contained a brief overview of the situation in the country over the past year. As the speaker pointed out, the main events of this period were two election campaigns - the parliamentary and presidential ones, which confirmed the fragmentation of the Indonesian political elite. New President Joko Widodo suggests strengthening economic independence while attracting foreign investment, turning Indonesia into the center of international sea routes, and calls for a "spiritual revolution" and a higher level of political participation. Using power structures, the government calls on moderate Muslims to fight back against these trends. The Government is strengthening the country's military capabilities by differentiating the sources of arms supply and linking procurement to technology transfer.

Indonesia's relations with China are ambivalent. On the one hand, Jakarta is making efforts to develop relations with China in various areas, and on the other hand, it is concerned about China's policy in the South China Sea. Representatives of the military elite, who, in comparison with the previous cabinets, are more widely represented in the current one, speak very frankly on this topic. Their attitude to the post-1998 reforms remains clearly critical.

The pace of economic development in 2014 decreased to 5% compared to 6% in previous years. Among the tasks that the new president sets in the field of economy is ensuring the country's economic security.-

new types of food at the expense of domestic sources, increasing the share of manufacturing products in exports, developing infrastructure and transport. In conclusion, the speaker noted that the growth of well-being and the reduction in the number of people living below the poverty level (according to Indonesian criteria) is accompanied by a deepening of social and property stratification.

G. V. Suchkov (ISAA MSU) continued the work of the section with a presentation on the topic: "Golkar at the crossroads: intra-party confrontation after the 2014 parliamentary and presidential elections", he focused on the balance of power within one of the key political players in modern Indonesia, the Golkar party, which showed good results in the April elections to the Council of People's Representatives (second place), and on the eve of the July (presidential) elections put "the wrong ones"."candidates and unexpectedly found themselves in the opposition. As a result, the party faced a deep crisis in the following months: it was split in two, with both factions (supporters of an alliance with the winner of the presidential election, Widodo, and opponents of this idea) waging a fierce struggle.

Popov V. A. (IB RAS) in the report "South-East Sulawesi" gave a brief description of this province and considered the prospects for its further development. The first state formations appeared there in the X century, and in the XIV century. Islam has spread in this area. In the south-east of Sulawesi, Tolaks, Butonese, Bugi (who play a significant role in the country's ruling elite) and other small peoples live. The terrain is mostly mountainous, and traditional Indonesian crops are grown in the valleys.

The province is rich in mineral deposits, but apart from nickel, the extraction of other minerals is poorly established, and their use is insignificant. Nickel exports (mainly to China) played a huge role in Indonesia's cooperation with China until January 2014, when the ban on the export of raw materials was adopted. Almost all nickel mining activity has now been reduced to zero, and although attempts are being made to build its own processing facilities in South-East Sulawesi, so far only primitive production facilities exist. Promising for tourism are Buton Island and the Wakatobi Archipelago, where a huge number of coral reefs are concentrated, and a number of islands with pristine nature.

The report "Development of a new constitution and reform of the political system in Thailand" was delivered by E. A. Fomicheva (IB RAS). She focused on the crisis of Thailand's "nation, king and religion" political system. All three components of Thai statehood are experiencing a severe crisis over the past 10 years, despite the existence and functioning of democratic institutions in the country. As a result, the speaker suggests, the system of bourgeois democracy itself is in a state of crisis, which has ceased to be the power of the people, but has adopted a configuration of the political system that allows maintaining the balance of the state, including the balance between certain groups of political and economic elites.

In Thailand, the imperfection of the current political system led to a military coup in 2014 and left the military junta that came to power with problems of legitimizing power and fighting political opponents. In the course of their solution, the military administration of Thailand created special bodies, including for the development of a new text of the constitution. However, all the created structures were not elective, which leaves open the question of the possibility of further democratization of Thai society. The Interim Government strongly supports this process, as well as the involvement of the country's citizens in democratic processes.

Elections are expected in the next year and a half, but at the moment the new text of the constitution raises a number of doubts, so the entire political elite - both official and opposition-considers it necessary to postpone the elections to a later date and finalize the constitution. According to the speaker, the current Thai regime will not be able to create an effective democratic system.

Pavel Tsvetov (RIAC), in his report "Vietnam-US Rapprochement in 2014-2015: Motives, forms and trends", noted that since 2013, when Vietnam-US relations acquired the status of "comprehensive partnership", the strengthening of relations between the two countries has been going on with consistently high dynamism and in a wide range of directions. In the future, this rapprochement will continue to extend to strategic areas: during the period under review, the ban on the supply of military weapons was partially lifted from Vietnam, and an agreement on cooperation in the field of nuclear energy was signed and approved by the relevant Senate commission. In the future, the Vietnamese Coast Guard may receive American weapons.

For the United States, the main motive for rapprochement with Vietnam is to expand the network of partners and allies in the Asia-Pacific region in order to contain the growth of China's influence. In this context, the strengthening of the Vietnam-US partnership can be seen as a result of Beijing's active efforts to strengthen its relations with China.

the South China Sea, building up military, including naval, capabilities, and not the most flexible position in negotiations on disputed islands.

At the same time, there are significant limitations to the current positive dynamics in the development of bilateral relations. The most important thing for Hanoi is to maintain friendly relations with the PRC, due to its strong dependence on it. In addition, there are elite groups in both Vietnam and the United States that are wary of the rapprochement between the two countries and its consequences.

With the report " The Vietnamese Diaspora in the USA. Problems of cultural adaptation and identity " was presented by O. V. Novakova (MSU Academy of Sciences).

G. F. Murasheva (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) made a report on Vietnam "Vietnam and the Opium War", based on the materials of the Vietnamese historical chronicle "Dai Nam Thik Luk". The author shows the ambivalent position of the ruling Nguyen dynasty in Vietnam regarding the First Opium War unleashed by England against China (1839-1842). While blaming England and the English for their " greed, treachery, and bad intentions," the dynasty did not miss the opportunity to assign a share of responsibility for its beginning to China. In the events related to the Opium War, according to G. F. Muratova, the Nguyens did not foresee the scale of the danger of Western expansionism, which soon became a victim of Vietnam.

The topic of Yu D. Minin's report is "Traditional costume of Ao zai as a socio-cultural factor in the development of Vietnamese society". Over the past 30 to 40 years, the Ao zai costume has established itself as one of the most recognizable elements of Vietnamese material culture and has become positioned as the personification of feminine beauty, grace and loyalty to traditions. Studying the history of the formation of Ao zai and analyzing its design features suggests that this costume organically combined the features of both Chinese and Vietnamese traditional clothing, and its final design was carried out artificially and was the result of the author's creativity. Ao zai in different periods of Vietnamese history reflected the complex social and political processes that took place in society. Confucian dogmas and ideas about the appearance of a person, the color symbolism of Buddhism, the influence of Western fashion - all this is reflected in the cut and decor of Ao zai. The history of this costume is inextricably linked with the ideological conflict between the North and the South, the values of communism and the bourgeoisie expressed in elements of the material culture of Vietnam, as well as ideas about the role of women in Vietnamese society.

N. Bektimirova (MSU ISAA) in her report "Traditional factors in Cambodia's foreign policy at the present stage" noted that Cambodia's foreign policy remains consistent with the principles laid down by the" father of the nation " King N. Sihanouk. Deep conviction in the objective necessity of a neutral foreign policy course for Cambodia was formed by N. Sihanouk in 1955 as a result of meetings and conversations with two initiators of the Bandung Conference-Prime Minister of Burma U Nu and Prime Minister of India J. P. Morgan. Nehru. The principles of Cambodia's foreign policy, which were based on neutrality in international affairs, were then enshrined in law. The form in which Cambodian neutrality was expressed in practice was the policy of balancing, on the one hand, between the great Powers, and on the other - in relations with regional neighbors who had their own, sometimes opposing interests in Cambodia.

After the establishment of the Kingdom of Cambodia in 1993, the Government of the country took a course to restore foreign policy neutrality. In a globalized world, the country's ruling elite is once again trying to implement a policy of neutrality in the traditional Khmer form of balancing between non - regional and regional actors, primarily between China and the United States, China and Japan, and China and Vietnam. The peculiarity of the policy of balancing the Cambodian authorities at the present stage is that China acts as one of the constants of the "balance" system.

The next block of presentations was dedicated to Singapore. The report "Singapore: Features of meritocracy" was delivered by E. M. Astafyeva (Institute of Information Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences). She stressed that this principle is most clearly implemented in the sphere of public service and political leadership, i.e. in the upper echelons of power. The existing internal contradictions of the concept of meritocracy are expressed in the confrontation between the egalitarian and elitist directions of this phenomenon. However, according to Astafieva, one cannot agree with some researchers who claim that meritocracy in Singapore is a myth. In contrast, meritocracy in Singapore is an ideology that aligns the interests of different social forces.

As a general rule, merit-based selection should be combined with the principle of non-discrimination, but achieving the latter is very problematic. The state can resolve this contradiction by redirecting resources to the social sphere, education, etc. Another concept of meritocracy involves selecting the best candidate to perform certain functions.

In the national discourse of Singapore, E. M. Astafieva noted, meritocracy is put forward as the only viable principle for organizing and distributing the country's limited resources. However, in the process of globalization, the idea of meritocracy in Singapore is becoming increasingly controversial.

A.D. Mileev (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) presented the report "The role of Singapore in the military-political plans of Japan and Germany in 1940-1942". After the end of the First World War, Great Britain sought to turn Singapore into the main military base in the region, which was to play a major role in the military confrontation of the Japanese Empire. Huge funds were invested in the creation of the base, and powerful defensive structures were built. Germany's military successes in Europe in 1940 prompted Japan to resume negotiations with it on a military-political alliance. The prospect of a Japanese-English clash was becoming increasingly clear. Germany, interested in involving Japan in a war against Great Britain, provided Tokyo with captured British secret documents containing plans for conducting defensive operations in the Far East, directives for organizing the defense of Singapore, and dispositions of the enemy's land, naval, and air forces. In the spring of 1941, a Japanese attack on Singapore was strongly suggested by Hitler in negotiations with Foreign Minister Matsuoka. The Fuhrer argued that in the future Tokyo would acquire a sphere of influence in the new world order. The capture of Singapore by Japanese forces in early 1942 was of strategic importance for the course of the war in the Pacific.

N. S. Skorobogatykh's report "The main directions of the political course of the Tony Abbott cabinet in 2013 - early 2015" opened the block of speeches devoted to the problems of Australia and Oceania.The issues of domestic and foreign policy of the Union of Australia at the present stage were touched upon: economic problems, social policy, foreign policy actions of the coalition cabinet. The article analyzes the main trends in the country's development and the problems that representatives of the ruling parties are trying to solve.

G. L. Stefanchuk (IB RAS) in the report "New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, touches to the portrait" noted that in the next parliamentary elections on September 20, 2014, the ruling National Party won an impressive victory, winning 60 seats in Parliament (one vote was not enough to reach an absolute majority). John Key won the election for the third time. Political scientists note that he really is a charismatic figure, his rating, according to various polls, reaches 70%. The Prime Minister is a millionaire, the richest member of the New Zealand Parliament. He refuses his salary, transferring it to a charitable foundation. Key is respected by businesspeople who recognize that he is a high-class financier and has achieved success because of his intelligence and hard work. Ki is characterized by ambition, the ability to surround himself with the right people, self-confidence and non-conflict, for which political opponents have dubbed him "Slippery John" and "Teflon Ki".

Topic of the report by O. V. Mosolova (IB RAS) "Education and training system in Australia". The Australian Government pays great attention to supporting and developing the education system. The State budget allocates significant funds for education and retraining, including funding for training and professional development programs for job seekers.

The Australian education system meets the highest standards and has received international recognition. The level of education and training in Australia is significantly higher than the average for OECD countries. The country has a high level of training of engineers and specialists in the field of high technologies, many senior managers and technical personnel have international experience. Australia is one of the world's leading countries providing educational services to international students.

In the final discussion, when summing up the results of the conference, the high level of reports and the value of its practical results for further research were noted. The speeches dedicated to the anniversary of the Bandung Conference once again proved the relevance of the principles laid down during its holding 60 years ago. The reports devoted to key issues of regional development examined global political and economic trends, security issues in the region, in particular in the South China Sea, analyzed the main vectors of development of states within the framework of ASEAN, problems and prospects of cooperation between these countries with other states of Greater East Asia and Russia. Reports on the socio-economic and political development of individual states in the region highlighted a wide range of issues, while paying attention not only to the current situation in these countries, but also to the events of the XIX-XX centuries. The research of scientists presented at the conference is not only of scientific importance, but can also be used by practical organizations related to the implementation of the Russian Federation's policy in the region.

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