JAKARTA -- Countries in Southeast Asia are "more diplomatically dynamic than ever," while China reels from its zero-COVID policy and Japan's "smart power" influence in the region continues to wane, according to the Lowy Institute's Asia Power Index 2023.
The Australia-based think tank released on Sunday its latest semi-annual index measuring the influence of 26 countries across the Indo-Pacific region. The U.S., China, Japan, India and Russia, in that order, have been the top five powerful nations since the index was launched in 2018.
