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Abstract
This article examines the growing significance of minilateralism in shaping the emerging regional architecture of the Indo-Pacific. While multilateralism has traditionally served as the main platform for managing interstate relations, its consensus-driven approach and institutional limitations have encouraged states to experiment with smaller, issue-specific groupings. The article argues that minilaterals provide flexibility, adaptability, and targeted problemsolving capacity, particularly in addressing security and economic issues where multilateralism falls short. Case studies of initiatives such as the Quad, AUKUS, and various trilaterals highlight their roles in balancing great-power competition, empowering middle powers, and advancing cooperation across maritime security, technology governance, and supply chain resilience. At the same time, the analysis underscores the risks minilaterals pose, including challenges to ASEAN centrality, questions of inclusivity and legitimacy, and the potential for fragmentation of the regional order. The paper further contends that the Indo-Pacific’s future architecture will be neither wholly multilateral nor minilateral but layered, with overlapping and sometimes competing institutions. This institutional mosaic reflects the complexities of Indo-Pacific’s geopolitical environment and requires careful management to avoid destabilisation.