Commentary A number of Southeast Asian states are being bullied. The mercantilist threat posed by the Chinese regime can’t be emphasized enough. This is an uncontroversial point to make. However, Christian Bachheimer, a researcher with an interest in “unpacking, exploring and expanding the traditional concept of hedging in international relations as applied to Indonesia and Asean,” begs to differ. In a piece for East Asia Forum, Bachheimer argues, rather unconvincingly, that “the dominant narrative” surrounding China’s “mercantilist strategy to drive ASEAN acquiescence” has been greatly exaggerated. There’s none so blind as those who will not see. One needn’t possess a Ph.D. in international relations to recognize the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) negative influence in Southeast Asia. For some reason, Bachheimer goes to great lengths to paint a picture of a highly uninfluential Beijing. The reality, however, tells a different story. For the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an intergovernmental organization consisting of the following 10 countries: Brunei, Cambodia, …