Malaysia's chairmanship of Asean last year unfolded amid intensifying great-power rivalry, the Myanmar crisis, South China Sea disputes, and economic uncertainty - a convergence that pushed Kuala Lumpur toward crisis containment rather than ambitious reform.

Within such constraints, however, analysts argue Malaysia performed credibly, particularly in keeping Asean-led mechanisms functional, the Asean Regional Forum remained active, and Malaysia successfully mediated the Thailand-Cambodia border dispute.

For Institute of Strategic & International Studies (Isis) analyst Izzah Khairina Ibrahim, Malaysia’s chairmanship was a case study in...