HONOLULU -- The structure of global power is shifting, and Asia is finally emerging as one of the pillars of the international system. We have heard this talk before -- over a decade ago the "Asian century" was the story line -- but it is finally happening. The rise of China is part of this story, but it is only a part. More significantly, the obsession with China obscures equally important changes occurring throughout the region.
China is a big deal: Its stunning growth is the most visible sign of and is in many ways the moving force behind "Asia's emergence." It is a complex process, the continuation of which is by no means certain, but China has become the "peg" on which Asia's future seems to hang, the most important factor in any assessment of the region. But there is far more happening in Asia than Chinese growth.
For one perspective, take the countries of the region one by one.