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-ASEAN-
 officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
 is an economic union comprising 10 member states in Southeast Asia, 
 promotes intergovernmental cooperation
 and facilitates economic, political, security, military, educational, and sociocultural integration
between its members and other countries in Asia
 primary objective was to accelerate economic growth and through that social progress and
cultural development. 
 secondary objective was to promote regional peace and stability based on the rule of law
and the principle of United Nations charter.
  ASEAN community comprising three pillars: the ASEAN security community, the ASEAN
economic community, and the ASEAN socio-cultural community. 
  A major partner of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

Founding
Main articles: ASEAN Declaration and ASEAN Charter
ASEAN was preceded by an organisation formed on 31 July 1961 called the Association of
Southeast Asia (ASA), a group consisting of Thailand, the Philippines, and the Federation of
Malaya. ASEAN itself was created on 8 August 1967, when the foreign ministers of five
countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, signed the ASEAN
Declaration. As set out in the Declaration, the aims and purposes of ASEAN are to accelerate
economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region, to promote regional
peace, collaboration and mutual assistance on matters of common interest, to provide assistance to
each other in the form of training and research facilities, to collaborate for better utilization of
agriculture and industry to raise the living standards of the people, to promote Southeast Asian
studies and to maintain close, beneficial co-operation with existing international organisations with
similar aims and purposes.
The creation of ASEAN was motivated by a common fear of communism and the spread of it from
recently taken over in mainland Asia with the Soviet Union occupation of the northern Korean
peninsula after World War II establishing a puppet regime in North Korea (1945), People's Republic
of China (1949) and portions of former French Indochina with North Vietnam (1954), accompanied
by the communist insurgency "Emergency" in British Malaya and unrest in the recently
independent Philippines from the U S. in the early 1950s. These events also encouraged the earlier
formation of S.E.A.T.O. (South East Asia Treaty Organization) led by the United States and United
Kingdom along with Australia with several Southeast Asian partners in 1954 as a "containment"
extension and an eastern version of the early defensive bulwark NATO in western Europe of
1949. However, the local member states of ASEAN group achieved greater cohesion in the mid-
1970s following a change in the balance of power after the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam
War in April 1975 and the decline of SEATO. The region's dynamic economic growth during the
1970s strengthened the organization, enabling ASEAN to adopt a unified response to the
subsequent Vietnam's invasion of Cambodia overthrowing the brief but violent radical leftist Khmer
Rouge regime and short military border skirmishes with northern neighbor and former communist
ally, China in 1979. ASEAN's first summit meeting, held in Bali, Indonesia in 1976, resulted in an
agreement on several industrial projects and the signing of a Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, and a
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Declaration of Concord. The end of the Cold War allowed ASEAN countries to exercise greater
political independence in the region, and in the 1990s, ASEAN emerged as a leading voice
on regional trade and security issues. On 15 December 1995, the Southeast Asian Nuclear-
Weapon-Free Zone Treaty was signed to turn Southeast Asia into a nuclear-weapon-free zone. The
treaty took effect on 28 March 1997 after all but one of the member states had ratified it. It became
fully effective on 21 June 2001 after the Philippines ratified it, effectively banning all nuclear
weapons in the region.

Expansion
On 7 January 1984, Brunei became ASEAN's sixth member and on 28 July 1995, following the end
of the Cold War, Vietnam joined as the seventh member. Laos and Myanmar (formerly Burma)
joined two years later on 23 July 1997. Cambodia was to join at the same time as Laos and
Myanmar, but a coup in 1997 and other internal instability delayed its entry. It then joined on 30 April
1999 following the stabilization of its government.
In 2006, ASEAN was given observer status at the United Nations General Assembly. In response,
the organisation awarded the status of "dialogue partner" to the UN.

The ASEAN Charter

On 15 December 2008, member states met in Jakarta to launch a charter, signed in November
2007, to move closer to "an EU-style community". The charter turned ASEAN into a legal entity and
aimed to create a single free-trade area for the region encompassing 500 million people. President
of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stated: "This is a momentous development when ASEAN
is consolidating, integrating, and transforming itself into a community. It is achieved while ASEAN
seeks a more vigorous role in Asian and global affairs at a time when the international system is
experiencing a seismic shift". Referring to climate change and economic upheaval, he concluded:
"Southeast Asia is no longer the bitterly divided, war-torn region it was in the 1960s and 1970s".
The financial crisis of 2007–2008 was seen as a threat to the charter's goals, and also set forth the
idea of a proposed human rights body to be discussed at a future summit in February 2009. This
proposition caused controversy, as the body would not have the power to impose sanctions or
punish countries which violated citizens' rights and would, therefore, be limited in effectiveness. The
body was established later in 2009 as the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human
Rights (AICHR). In November 2012, the commission adopted the ASEAN Human Rights
Declaration.
Vietnam held the chair of ASEAN in 2020. Brunei held it in 2021.

Myanmar crisis
Since 2017, political, military and ethnic affairs in Myanmar have posed unusual challenges for
ASEAN, creating precedent-breaking situations and threatening the traditions and unity of the group,
and its global standing -- with ASEAN responses indicating possible fundamental change in the
nature of the organization.
Rohingya genocide
The Rohingya genocide erupting in Myanmar in August 2017 -- killing thousands of Rohingya
people in Myanmar, driving most into neighboring Bangladesh, and continuing for months -- created
a global outcry demanding ASEAN take action against the civilian-military coalition government of
Myanmar, which had long discriminated against the Rohingya, and had launched the 2017 attacks
upon them.
In August 2019, the annual ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting concluded with a
joint communique calling on Myanmar's government to guarantee the safety of all Rohingya -- both
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in Myanmar and in exile -- and pushed for more dialogue with the refugees about their repatriation to
Myanmar. But later that month ASEAN's Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) supported Myanmar's
"efforts" on repatriation, with aid, restraining some members' desire for more intrusive proposals.
By January 2020, ASEAN had made little progress to prepare safe conditions for the Rohingyas'
return to Myanmar.
2021 coup
In February, 2021 -- the day before a newly elected slate of civilian leaders was to take office in
Myanmar -- a military junta overthrew Myanmar's civilian government, in a coup d'etat, declaring a
national state of emergency, imposing martial law, arresting elected civilian leaders, violently
clamping down on dissent, and replacing civilian government with the military's appointees.
In April, 2021, -- in the first-ever ASEAN summit called to deal primarily with a domestic crisis in a
member state-- ASEAN leaders met with Myanmar's coup leader, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing,
and agreed to a five-point consensus solution to the crisis in Myanmar:

 1) The immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar;

 2) Constructive dialogue among all parties concerned... to seek a peaceful solution in the
interests of the people;
 3) Mediation facilitated by an envoy of ASEAN's Chair, with the assistance of ASEAN's
Secretary-General;
 4) Humanitarian assistance provided by ASEAN through its AHA Centre; and
 5) A visit to Myanmar, by the special envoy and delegation, to meet with all parties
concerned.

Member states
Main article: Member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
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Map showing the member states of ASEAN.

List of member states

State Capital Accession[100]

Bandar Seri
 Brunei January 7, 1984
Begawan

 Cambodia Phnom Penh April 30, 1999

 Indonesia Jakarta August 8, 1967

 Laos Vientiane July 23, 1997

 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur August 8, 1967

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State Capital Accession[100]

 Myanmar Napyidaw July 23, 1997

 Philippines Manila August 8, 1967

 Singapore Singapore August 8, 1967

 Thailand Bangkok August 8, 1967

 Vietnam Hanoi July 28, 1995

Observers
Main article: Enlargement of ASEAN
There are currently two states seeking accession to ASEAN: Papua New Guinea and East Timor.

 Accession of Papua New Guinea to ASEAN (observer status since 1976)

 Accession of East Timor to ASEAN (since 2002)
A number of countries had expressed an interest in becoming part of ASEAN such
as Bangladesh, Fiji and Sri Lanka.

The ASEAN Way

The "ASEAN Way" refers to a methodology or approach to solving issues that respect Southeast
Asia's cultural norms. Masilamani and Peterson summarize it as "a working process or style that is
informal and personal. Policymakers constantly utilize compromise, consensus, and consultation in
the informal decision-making process... it above all prioritizes a consensus-based, non-conflictual
way of addressing problems. Quiet diplomacy allows ASEAN leaders to communicate without
bringing the discussions into the public view. Members avoid the embarrassment that may lead to
further conflict." It has been said that the merits of the ASEAN Way might "be usefully applied to
global conflict management". However, critics have argued that such an approach can be only
applied to Asian countries, to specific cultural norms and understandings notably, due to a difference
in mindset and level of tension

Structure
Beginning in 1997, heads of each member state adopted the ASEAN Vision 2020 during the group's
30th anniversary meeting held in Kuala Lumpur. As a means for the realisation of a single ASEAN
community, this vision provides provisions on peace and stability, a nuclear-free region, closer
economic integration, human development, sustainable development, cultural heritage, being a
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drug-free region, environment among others. The vision also aimed to "see an outward-looking
ASEAN playing a pivotal role in the international fora, and advancing ASEAN's common interests".
ASEAN Vision 2020 was formalised and made comprehensive through the Bali Concord II in 2003.
Three major pillars of a single ASEAN community were established: Political-Security Community
(APSC), Economic Community (AEC) and Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC). To fully embody the
three pillars as part of the 2015 integration, blueprints for APSC and ASCC were subsequently
adopted in 2009 in Cha-am, Thailand.] The ASEAN Community, initially planned to commence by
2020, was accelerated to begin by 31 December 2015. It was decided during the 12th ASEAN
Summit in Cebu in 2007.
At the 23rd ASEAN Summit in November 2013, leaders decided to develop a post-2015 Vision and
created the High-Level Task Force (HLTF) that consists of ten high-level representatives from all
member states. The Vision was adopted at the 27th Summit in November 2015 in Kuala Lumpur.
The ASEAN community would revise and renew its vision every ten years to provide a framework for
continuous development and further integration.
The terms in the post-2015 Vision are divided into four subcategories, namely APSC, AEC, ASCC,
and Moving Forward. APSC issues are covered under articles 7 and 8. The former generally states
the community's overall aspiration to aim for a united, inclusive and resilient community. It also puts
human and environmental security as crucial points. Deepening engagement with both internal and
external parties are also stressed to contribute to international peace, security and stability. The
"Moving Forward" subcategory implies the acknowledgement of weaknesses of the institution's
capacity to process and coordinate ASEAN work. Strengthening ASEAN Secretariat and other
ASEAN organs and bodies is therefore desired. There is also a call for a higher level of ASEAN
institutional presence at the national, regional and international levels.
Additionally, ASEAN institutional weakness has been further amplified by the ineffectiveness of its
initiatives in fighting against COVID-19. ASEAN has been making painstaking efforts to combat the
pandemic by establishing both intra and extra-regional ad hoc agencies such as theASEAN-China
Ad-Hoc Health Ministers Joint Task Force, the Special ASEAN Summit on the COVID-19, COVID-19
ASEAN Response Fund, and the Special ASEAN Plus Three Summit on COVID-19. These
mechanisms aim to facilitate senior discussions among regional actors on how to contain the
pandemic's spread and reduce its negative impacts. However, their practical implementations are
still insignificant when the cooperation among member states is insubstantial, as illustrated by the
polarisation of their COVID-19 policies and the high number of cases and deaths in the region.

AEC Blueprint (ASEAN Economic Community)

ASEAN leaders sign the declaration of the ASEAN Economic Community during the 27th ASEAN Summit in
Kuala Lumpur, 2015

The AEC aims to "implement economic integration initiatives" to create a single market for member
states. The blueprint that serves as a comprehensive guide for the establishment of the community
was adopted on 20 November 2007 at the 13th ASEAN Summit in Singapore.

APSC Blueprint (ASEAN Political- Security Community)

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During the 14th ASEAN Summit, the group adopted the APSC Blueprint. This document is aimed at
creating a robust political-security environment within ASEAN, with programs and activities outlined
to establish the APSC by 2016. It is based on the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN Security Community
Plan of Action, and the Vientiane Action Program. The APSC aims to create a sense of responsibility
toward comprehensive security and a dynamic, outward-looking region in an increasingly integrated
and interdependent world.
The ASEAN Defence Industry Collaboration (ADIC) was proposed at the 4th ASEAN Defence
Ministers' Meeting (ADMM) on 11 May 2010 in Hanoi. It has the purpose, among others, to reduce
defence imports from non-ASEAN countries by half and to further develop the defence industry in
the region. It was formally adopted on the next ADMM on 19 May 2011, in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism (ACCT) serves as a framework for regional
cooperation to counter, prevent, and suppress terrorism and deepen counter-terrorism
cooperation. It was signed by ASEAN leaders in 2007. On 28 April 2011, Brunei ratified the
convention and a month later, the convention came into force. Malaysia became the tenth member
state to ratify ACCT on 11 January 2013

ASCC Blueprint ( ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community)

The ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) was also adopted during the 14th ASEAN Summit. It
envisions an "ASEAN Community that is people-centered and socially responsible with a view to
achieving enduring solidarity and unity among the countries and peoples of ASEAN by forging a
common identity and building a caring and sharing society which is inclusive and harmonious where
the well-being, livelihood, and welfare of the peoples are enhanced". Among its focus areas include
human development, social welfare and protection, social justice and rights, environmental
sustainability, building the ASEAN identity, and narrowing the development gap.
To track the progress of the AEC, a compliance tool called the AEC Scorecard was developed
based on the EU Internal Market Scorecard.
APAEC blueprint ( ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation)
Part of the work towards the ASEAN Economic Community is the integration of the energy systems
of the ASEAN member states. The blueprint for this integration is provided by the ASEAN Plan of
Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC). APAEC is managed by the ASEAN Center for Energy.
2020 ASEAN Banking Integration Framework
As trade is liberalised with the integration in 2015, the need arises for ASEAN banking institutions to
accommodate and expand their services to an intra-ASEAN market. Experts, however, have already
forecast a shaky economic transition, especially for smaller players in the banking and financial
services industry. Two separate reports by Standard & Poor's (S&P) outline the challenges that
ASEAN financial institutions face as they prepare for the 2020 banking integration. The reports point
out that overcrowded banking sector in the Philippines is expected to feel the most pressure as the
integration welcomes tighter competition with bigger and more established foreign banks. As a
result, there needs to be a regional expansion by countries with a small banking sector to lessen the
impact of the post-integration environment. In a follow-up report, S&P recently cited the Philippines
for "shoring up its network bases and building up capital ahead of the banking integration – playing
defence and strengthening their domestic networks".
Financial integration roadmap
The roadmap for financial integration is the latest regional initiative that aims to strengthen local self-
help and support mechanisms. The roadmap's implementation would contribute to the realisation of
the AEC. Adoption of a common currency, when conditions are ripe, could be the final stage of the
AEC. The roadmap identifies approaches and milestones in capital market development, capital
account and financial services liberalisation, and ASEAN currency cooperation. Capital market
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development entails promoting institutional capacity as well as the facilitation of greater cross-border
collaboration, linkages, and harmonisation between capital markets. Orderly capital account
liberalisation would be promoted with adequate safeguards against volatility and systemic risks. To
expedite the process of financial services liberalisation, ASEAN has agreed on a positive list
modality and adopted milestones to facilitate negotiations. Currency cooperation would involve the
exploration of possible currency arrangements, including an ASEAN currency payment system for
trade in local goods to reduce the demand for US dollars and to help promote stability of regional
currencies, such as by settling intra-ASEAN trade using regional currencies.
In regards to a common currency, ASEAN leaders agreed in November 1999 to create the
establishment of currency swaps and repurchase agreements as a credit line against future financial
shocks. In May 2000, ASEAN finance ministers agreed to plan for closer cooperation through the
Chiang Mai Initiative (CMI). The CMI has two components, an expanded ASEAN Swap Arrangement
(ASA), and a network of bilateral swap arrangements among the ASEAN Plus Three. The ASA
preceded the 1997 Asian financial crisis and was originally established by the monetary authorities
of the five founding member states to help meet temporary liquidity problems. The ASA now includes
all ten member states with an expanded facility of US$1 billion. In recognition of the economic
interdependence of East Asia, which has combined foreign exchange reserves amounting to about
US$1 trillion, a network of bilateral swap arrangements and repurchase agreements among the
ASEAN Plus Three has been agreed upon. The supplementary facility aims to provide temporary
financing for member states with balance-of-payments difficulties. In 2009, 16 bilateral swap
arrangements (BSAs) were concluded with a combined amount of about US$35.5 billion. The CMI
was signed on 9 December 2009 and took effect on 20 March 2014 while the amended version, the
multilateralisation of CMI (CMIM), was on 17 July 2014. The CMIM is a multilateral currency swap
arrangement governed by a single contractual agreement. In addition, an independent regional
surveillance unit called the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) was established to
monitor and analyse economies and to support the CMIM decision-making process. The
amendments would allow access for the auction of a crisis prevention facility. These amendments
are expected to fortify CMIM as the region's financial safety net in the event of any potential or actual
liquidity difficulty.
During peacetime, the AMRO would conduct annual consultations with individual member
economies and prepare quarterly-consolidated reports on the macroeconomic assessment of the
ASEAN+3 region and individual member countries. In a time of crisis, the AMRO would prepare
recommendations on any swap request based on macroeconomic analysis of a member state and
monitor the use and impact of funds once an application is approved. AMRO was officially
incorporated as a company limited by guarantee in Singapore on 20 April 2011. Governance of
AMRO is being exercised by the Executive Committee (EC) and its operational direction by the
Advisory Panel (AP). AMRO is currently headed by Dr Yoichi Nemoto of Japan, who is serving his
second two-year term until 26 May 2016.
Food security
Member states recognise the importance of strengthening food security to maintain stability and
prosperity in the region. As ASEAN moves towards AEC and beyond, food security would be an
integral part of the community-building agenda. Strengthened food security is even more relevant in
light of potentially severe risks from climate change with agriculture and fisheries being the most
affected industries.
Part of the aim of ASEAN integration is to achieve food security collectively via trade in rice and
maize. Trade facilitation measures and the harmonisation/equivalency of food regulation and control
standards would reduce the cost of trade in food products. While specialisation and revealed
comparative and competitive indices point to complementarities between trade patterns among the
member states, intra-ASEAN trade in agriculture is quite small, something that integration could
address. The MARKET project would provide flexible and demand-driven support to the ASEAN
Secretariat while bringing more private-sector and civil-society input into regional agriculture policy
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dialogue. By building an environment that reduces barriers to trade, ASEAN trade would increase,
thereby decreasing the risk of food price crisis.

Economy
ASEAN members by
Human Development Index[162]

Country HDI (2019)

 Singapore 0.938 (highest) very high

 Brunei 0.838 very high

 Malaysia 0.810 very high

 Thailand 0.777 high

 Indonesia 0.718 high

 Philippines 0.718 high

 ASEAN 0.713 (average) high

 Vietnam 0.704 high

 Laos 0.613 medium

 Cambodia 0.594 medium

 Myanmar 0.583 (lowest) medium

Selection of GDP PPP data (top 10 countries and blocks) in no particular order

The group sought economic integration by creating the AEC by the end of 2015 that established
a single market. The average economic growth of member states from 1989 to 2009 was between
3.8% and 7%. This was greater than the average growth of APEC, which was 2.8%.The ASEAN
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Free Trade Area (AFTA), established on 28 January 1992, includes a Common Effective Preferential
Tariff (CEPT) to promote the free flow of goods between member states ASEAN had only six
members when it was signed. The new member states (Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia)
have not fully met AFTA's obligations, but are officially considered part of the agreement as they
were required to sign it upon entry into ASEAN, and were given longer time frames to meet AFTA's
tariff reduction obligations. The next steps are to create a single market and production base, a
competitive economic region, a region of equitable economic development, and a region that is fully
integrated into the global economy. Since 2007, ASEAN countries have gradually lowered their
import duties to member states, with a target of zero import duties by 2016.
ASEAN countries have many economic zones (industrial parks, eco-industrial parks, special
economic zones, technology parks, and innovation districts) (see reference for comprehensive list
from 2015). In 2018, eight of the ASEAN members are among the world's outperforming economies,
with positive long-term prospect for the region. ASEAN's Secretariat projects that the regional body
will grow to become the world's fourth largest economy by 2030.
The ASEAN Centre for Energy publishes the ASEAN Energy Outlook every five years, analysing
and promoting the integration of national energy systems across the region. The sixth edition was
published in 2020.

Internal market
ASEAN planned to establish a single market based upon the four freedoms by the end of 2015, with
the goal of ensuring free flow of goods, services, skilled labour, and capital. The ASEAN Economic
Community was formed in 2015, but the group deferred about 20% of the harmonization provisions
needed to create a common market and set a new deadline of 2025.
Until the end of 2010, intra-ASEAN trade was still low as trade involved mainly exports to countries
outside the region, with the exception of Laos and Myanmar, whose foreign trade was ASEAN-
oriented. In 2009, realised foreign direct investment (FDI) was US$37.9 billion and increased two-
fold in 2010 to US$75.8 billion. 22% of FDI came from the European Union, followed by ASEAN
countries (16%), and by Japan and the United States.
The ASEAN Framework Agreement on Trade in Services (AFAS) was adopted at the ASEAN
Summit in Bangkok in December 1995. Under the agreement, member states enter into successive
rounds of negotiations to liberalise trade in services with the aim of submitting increasingly higher
levels of commitment. ASEAN has concluded seven packages of commitments under AFAS.
Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs) have been agreed upon by ASEAN for eight professions:
physicians, dentists, nurses, architects, engineers, accountants, surveyors, and tourism
professionals. Individuals in these professions will be free to work in any ASEAN states effective 31
December 2015.
In addition, six member states (Malaysia, Vietnam (2 exchanges), Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand,
and Singapore) have collaborated on integrating their stock exchanges, which includes 70% of its
transaction values with the goal to compete with international exchanges.
Single market will also include the ASEAN Single Aviation Market (ASEAN-SAM), the region's
aviation policy geared towards the development of a unified and single aviation market in Southeast
Asia. It was proposed by the ASEAN Air Transport Working Group, supported by the ASEAN Senior
Transport Officials Meeting, and endorsed by the ASEAN Transport Ministers. It is expected to
liberalise air travel between member states allowing ASEAN airlines to benefit directly from the
growth in air travel, and also free up tourism, trade, investment, and service flows. Since 1
December 2008, restrictions on the third and fourth freedoms of the air between capital cities of
member states for air passenger services have been removed, while from 1 January 2009, full
liberalisation of air freight services in the region took effect. On 1 January 2011, full liberalisation on
fifth freedom traffic rights between all capital cities took effect. This policy supersedes existing
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unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral air services agreements among member states which are
inconsistent with its provisions.

Monetary union
The concept of an Asian Currency Unit (ACU) started in the middle of the 1990s, prior to the 1997
Asian financial crisis. It is a proposed basket of Asian currencies, similar to the European Currency
Unit, which was the precursor of the Euro. The Asian Development Bank is responsible for exploring
the feasibility and construction of the basket. Since the ACU is being considered to be a precursor to
a common currency, it has a dynamic outlook of the region. The overall goal of a common currency
is to contribute to the financial stability of a regional economy, including price stability. It means
lower cost of cross-border business through the elimination of currency risk. Greater flows of intra-
trade would put pressure on prices, resulting in cheaper goods and services. Individuals benefit not
only from the lowering of prices, they save by not having to change money when travelling, by being
able to compare prices more readily, and by the reduced cost of transferring money across borders.
However, there are conditions for a common currency: the intensity of intra-regional trade and the
convergence of macroeconomic conditions. Substantial intra-ASEAN trade (which is growing, partly
as a result of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and the ASEAN Economic Community.) and
economic integration is an incentive for a monetary union. Member states currently trade more with
other countries (80%) than among themselves (20%). Therefore, their economies are more
concerned about currency stability against major international currencies, like the US dollar. On
macroeconomic conditions, member states have different levels of economic development, capacity,
and priorities that translate into different levels of interest and readiness. Monetary integration,
however, implies less control over national monetary and fiscal policy to stimulate the economy.
Therefore, greater convergence in macroeconomic conditions is being enacted to improve conditions
and confidence in a common currency. Other concerns include weaknesses in the financial sectors,
inadequacy of regional-level resource pooling mechanisms and institutions required to form and
manage a currency union, and lack of political preconditions for monetary co-operation and a
common currency

Free trade
In 1992, the Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) scheme was adopted as a schedule for
phasing out tariffs to increase the "region's competitive advantage as a production base geared for
the world market". This law would act as the framework for the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA),
which is an agreement by member states concerning local manufacturing in ASEAN. It was signed
on 28 January 1992 in Singapore. [

Tourism

With the institutionalisation of visa-free travel between ASEAN member states, intra-ASEAN travel
has escalated. In 2010, 47% or 34 million out of 73 million tourists in ASEAN member-states were
from other ASEAN countries. Cooperation in tourism was formalised in 1976, following the formation
of the Sub-Committee on Tourism (SCOT) under the ASEAN Committee on Trade and Tourism. The
1st ASEAN Tourism Forum was held on 18–26 October 1981 in Kuala Lumpur. In 1986, ASEAN
Promotional Chapters for Tourism (APCT) were established in Hong Kong, West Germany, the
United Kingdom, Australia/New Zealand, Japan, and North America.
1981 The ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) was established. It is a regional meeting of NGOs,
Ministers, sellers, buyers and journalists to promote the ASEAN countries as a single one tourist
destination. The annual event 2019 in Ha Long marks the 38th anniversary and involves all the
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tourism industry sectors of the 10 member states of ASEAN: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. It was
organized by TTG Events from Singapore.

Foreign relations

Royal Thai Embassy, Helsinki, flying its own national flag as well as ASEAN's flag

Main article: ASEAN Summit

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte poses for a photo with the ASEAN foreign ministers during the 50th
anniversary of the group's foundation on 8 August 2017.

ASEAN maintains a global network of alliances, dialogue partners and diplomatic missions, and is
involved in numerous international affairs. The organisation maintains good relationships on an
international scale, particularly towards Asia-Pacific nations, and upholds itself as a neutral party in
politics. It holds ASEAN Summits, where heads of government of each member states meet to
discuss and resolve regional issues, as well as to conduct other meetings with countries outside the
bloc to promote external relations and deal with international affairs. The first summit was held
in Bali in 1976. The third summit was in Manila in 1987, and during this meeting, it was decided that
the leaders would meet every five years. The fourth meeting was held in Singapore in 1992 where
the leaders decided to meet more frequently, every three years.] In 2001, it was decided that the
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organisation will meet annually to address urgent issues affecting the region. In December 2008, the
ASEAN Charter came into force and with it, the ASEAN Summit will be held twice a year. The formal
summit meets for three days, and usually includes internal organisation meeting, a conference with
foreign ministers of the ASEAN Regional Forum, an ASEAN Plus Three meeting and ASEAN-CER,
a meeting of member states with Australia and New Zealand.
ASEAN is a major partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, developing cooperation model
with the organisation in the field of security, economy, finance, tourism, culture, environmental
protection, development and sustainability. Additionally, the grouping has been closely aligned
with China, cooperating across numerous areas, including economy, security, education, culture,
technology, agriculture, human resource, society, development, investment, energy, transport, public
health, tourism, media, environment, and sustainability. It is also the linchpin in the foreign policy of
Australia and New Zealand, with the three sides being integrated into an essential alliance.
ASEAN also participates in the East Asia Summit (EAS), a pan-Asian forum held annually by the
leaders of eighteen countries in the East Asian region, with ASEAN in a leadership position. Initially,
membership included all member states of ASEAN plus China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia,
and New Zealand, but was expanded to include the United States and Russia at the Sixth EAS in
2011. The first summit was held in Kuala Lumpur on 14 December 2005, and subsequent meetings
have been held after the annual ASEAN Leaders' Meeting. The summit has discussed issues
including trade, energy, and security and the summit has a role in regional community building.
Other meetings include the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting that focus mostly on specific topics, such as
defence or the environment, and are attended by ministers. The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF),
which met for the first time in 1994, fosters dialogue and consultation, and to promote confidence-
building and preventive diplomacy in the region. As of July 2007, it consists of twenty-seven
participants that include all ASEAN member states, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, the EU,
India, Japan, North and South Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea,
Russia, East Timor, the United States, and Sri Lanka. Taiwan has been excluded since the
establishment of the ARF, and issues regarding the Taiwan Strait are neither discussed at ARF
meetings nor stated in the ARF Chairman's Statements.
ASEAN also holds meetings with Europe during the Asia–Europe Meeting (ASEM), an informal
dialogue process initiated in 1996 with the intention of strengthening co-operation between the
countries of Europe and Asia, especially members of the European Union and ASEAN in particular.
ASEAN, represented by its secretariat, is one of the forty-five ASEM partners. It also appoints a
representative to sit on the governing board of Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), a socio-cultural
organisation associated with the meeting. Annual bilateral meetings between ASEAN and India,
Russia and the United States are also held.

Relations with other blocs

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  ASEAN
  ASEAN Plus Three
  ASEAN Plus Six

ASEAN Plus Three

In 1990, Malaysia proposed the creation of an East Asia Economic Caucus composed of the
members of ASEAN, China, Japan, and South Korea. It intended to counterbalance the growing US
influence in Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and Asia as a whole. However, the proposal
failed because of strong opposition from the US and Japan. Work for further integration continued,
and the ASEAN Plus Three, consisting of ASEAN, China, Japan, and South Korea, was created in
1997.
ASEAN Plus Three is a forum that functions as a coordinator of co-operation between the ASEAN
and the three East Asian nations of China, South Korea, and Japan. Government leaders, ministers,
and senior officials from the ten members of the ASEAN and the three East Asian states consult on
an increasing range of issues. The ASEAN Plus Three is the latest development of Southeast Asia-
East Asia regional co-operation. In the past, proposals, such as South Korea's call for an Asian
Common Market in 1970 and Japan's 1988 suggestion for an Asian Network, have been made to
bring closer regional co-operation.
ASEAN Plus Six
ASEAN Plus Three was the first of attempts for further integration to improve existing ties of
Southeast Asia with East Asian countries of China, Japan and South Korea. This was followed by
the even larger East Asia Summit (EAS), which included ASEAN Plus Three as well as India,
Australia, and New Zealand. This group acted as a prerequisite for the planned East Asia
Community which was supposedly patterned after the European Community (now transformed into
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the European Union). The ASEAN Eminent Persons Group was created to study this policy's
possible successes and failures.
The group became ASEAN Plus Six with Australia, New Zealand, and India, and stands as the
linchpin of Asia Pacific's economic, political, security, socio-cultural architecture, as well as the
global economy. Codification of the relations between these countries has seen progress through
the development of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a free-trade agreement
involving the 15 countries of ASEAN Plus Six (excluding India). RCEP would, in part, allow the
members to protect local sectors and give more time to comply with the aim for developed country
members.

Environment

Haze over Borneo, 2006

At the turn of the 21st century, ASEAN began to discuss environmental agreements. These included
the signing of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in 2002 as an attempt to
control haze pollution in Southeast Asia, arguably the region's most high-profile environmental
issue. Unfortunately, this was unsuccessful due to the outbreaks of haze in 2005, 2006, 2009, 2013,
and 2015. As of 2015, thirteen years after signing the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze
Pollution, the situation with respect to the long term issue of Southeast Asian haze has not been
changed for 50% of the ASEAN member states, and still remains as a crisis every two years during
summer and fall.

Video: ASEAN explained in 5 minutes

Trash dumping from foreign countries (such as Japan and Canada) to ASEAN has yet to be
discussed and resolved.] Important issues include deforestation (with Indonesia recorded the largest
loss of forest in the region, more than other member states combined in the 2001-2013 period),
plastic waste dumping (5 member states were among the top 10 out of 192 countries based on 2010
data, with Indonesia ranked as second worst polluter), threatened mammal species (Indonesia
ranked the worst in the region with 184 species under threat), threatened fish species (Indonesia
ranked the worst in the region]), threatened (higher) plant species (Malaysia ranked the worst in the
region).
ASEAN has many opportunities for renewable energy. With solar and wind power plus off river
pumped hydro storage, ASEAN electricity industry could achieve very high penetration (78%–97%)
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of domestic solar and wind energy resources at a competitive levelised costs of electricity range
from 55 to 115 U.S. dollars per megawatt-hour based on 2020 technology costs. Vietnam's
experience in solar and wind power development provides relevant implications for the other ASEAN
countries.

Education
While high performing Asian economies and the six oldest ASEAN member states have invested
heavily in public education at the primary and secondary levels, tertiary education has been left
largely to the private sector. Tertiary education in Southeast Asia is, in general, relatively weak in
terms of technological capacity and integration such as in credit transfer schemes. The governments
of Singapore and Malaysia are highly focused on innovation while the rest of the region lags
behind. In most cases, universities are focused on teaching and service to government rather
than academic research. Universities, both in terms of academic salaries and research infrastructure
(libraries, laboratories), tend to be poorly supported financially. Moreover, regional academic
journals cater to their local audiences and respond less to international standards which makes
universal or regional benchmarking difficult. Governments have a vested interest in investing in
education and other aspects of human capital infrastructure, especially rapidly developing countries
in the region. In the short run, investment spending directly supports aggregate demand and growth.
In the longer term, investments in physical infrastructure, productivity enhancements, and provision
of education and health services determine the potential for growth.
ASEAN has a scholarship program offered by Singapore to the 9 other member states for secondary
school, junior college, and university education. It covers accommodation, food, medical benefits
and accident insurance, school fees, and examination fees. Its recipients, who then perform well on
the GCE Advanced Level Examination, may apply for ASEAN undergraduate scholarships, which
are tailored specifically to undergraduate institutions in Singapore and other ASEAN member
countries. Singapore has used this program effectively to attract many of the best students from the
ASEAN region over the past several years, and scholars for the most part tend to remain in
Singapore to pursue undergraduate studies through the ASEAN Undergraduate Scholarship
program.

Culture
The organization hosts cultural activities in an attempt to further integrate the region. These include
sports and educational activities as well as writing awards. Examples of these include the ASEAN
Centre for Biodiversity, ASEAN Heritage Parks and the ASEAN Outstanding Scientist and
Technologist Award. In addition, the ASEAN region has been recognized as one of the world's most
diverse region ethnically, religiously and linguistically.

Media
Member states have promoted co-operation in information to help build an ASEAN identity. One of
the main bodies in ASEAN co-operation in information is the ASEAN Committee on Culture and
Information (COCI). Established in 1978, its mission is to promote effective co-operation in the fields
of information, as well as culture, through its various projects and activities. It includes
representatives from national institutions like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministries of Culture and
Information, national radio and television networks, museums, archives and libraries, among others.
Together, they meet once a year to formulate and agree on projects to fulfil their mission. On 14
November 2014, foreign ministers of member states launched the ASEAN Communication Master
Plan (ACPM). It provides a framework for communicating the character, structure, and overall vision
of ASEAN and the ASEAN community to key audiences within the region and globally. The plan
seeks to demonstrate the relevance and benefits of the ASEAN through fact-based and compelling
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communications, recognising that the ASEAN community is unique and different from other country
integration models.
Several key initiatives under the AMC include:

 The ASEAN Media Portal was launched 16 November 2007. The portal aims to provide a
one-stop site that contains documentaries, games, music videos, and multimedia clips
on the culture, arts, and heritage of the ASEAN countries to showcase ASEAN culture
and the capabilities of its media industry.
 The ASEAN NewsMaker Project, an initiative launched in 2009, trains students and
teachers to produce informational video clips about their countries. The project was
initiated by Singapore. Students trained in NewsMaker software, video production,
together with developing narrative storytelling skills. Dr Soeung Rathchavy, Deputy
Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community noted that: "Raising
ASEAN awareness amongst the youth is part and parcel of our efforts to build the
ASEAN Community by 2015. Using ICT and the media, our youths in the region will get
to know ASEAN better, deepening their understanding and appreciation of the cultures,
social traditions and values in ASEAN."
 The ASEAN Digital Broadcasting Meeting, is an annual forum for ASEAN members to
set digital television (DTV) standards and policies, and to discuss progress in the
implementation of the blueprint from analogue to digital TV broadcasting by 2020. During
the 11th ASEAN Digital Broadcasting Meeting members updated the status on DTV
implementation and agreed to inform ASEAN members on the Guidelines for ASEAN
Digital Switchover. An issue was raised around the availability and affordability of set-top
boxes (STB), thus ASEAN members were asked to make policies to determine funding
for STBs, methods of allocation, subsidies and rebates, and other methods for the
allocation of STBs. It was also agreed in the meeting to form a task force to develop STB
specifications for DVB-T2 to ensure efficiency.
 The ASEAN Post was launched on 8 August 2017 to commemorate ASEAN's 50th
Anniversary. It is an independent regional digital media company that is headquartered
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The focus of the company is to leverage-off new
technologies and future proof the media landscape. It was founded by former investment
banker Rohan Ramakrishnan.
Music
Music plays a significant role in ASEAN affairs, as evidenced by the new music composed for, and
to be performed at, the 34th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok in June 2019.
Since ASEAN's founding, a number of songs have been written for the regional alliance:

 "The ASEAN Way", the official regional anthem of ASEAN. Music by Kittikhun

Sodprasert and Sampow Triudom; lyrics by Payom Valaiphatchra.
 "ASEAN Song of Unity" or "ASEAN Hymn". Music by Ryan Cayabyab.
 "Let Us Move Ahead", an ASEAN song. Composed by Candra Darusman.
 "ASEAN Rise", ASEAN's 40th anniversary song. Music by Dick Lee; lyrics by Stefanie
Sun.
 "ASEAN Spirit", ASEAN's 50th anniversary song. Composed by Chino Toledo. Lyrics
by National Artist for Literature, Rio Alma. Performed by Christian Bautista; video
directed by Joaquin Pedro Valdes.
Sports
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The main sporting event of ASEAN is the Southeast Asian Games, a biennial meet of athletes from
the ten member-states. A non-member state Timor Leste (also known as East Timor) is now
participating the SEA Games.

 Southeast Asian Games

 ASEAN University Games
 ASEAN School Games
 ASEAN Para Games
 ASEAN Football Championship
 SEABA Championship

 Global influence and reception

 ASEAN has been credited by many as among the world's most influential organisations and
a global powerhouse. The organisation plays a prominent role in regional and international
diplomacy, politics, security, economy and trade. The ASEAN Free Trade Area also stands
as one of the largest and most important free trade areas in the world, and together with its
network of dialogue partners, drove some of the world's largest multilateral forums and blocs,
including APEC, EAS and RCEP. Being one of the world's forefront political, economic and
security meetings, the ASEAN Summit serves as a prominent regional (Asia) and
international (worldwide) conference, with world leaders attending its related summits and
meetings to discuss about various problems and global issues, strengthening cooperation,
and making decisions.
 Economic integration


 The Secretariat of ASEAN in Jakarta

 The group's integration plan has raised concerns, in particular, the 2015 deadline. Business
and economy experts who attended the Lippo-UPH Dialogue in Naypyidaw cited unresolved
issues relating to aviation, agriculture, and human resources. Some panelists, among
them, Kishore Mahbubani, warned against high expectations at the onset. He stated: "Please
do not expect a big bang event in 2015 where everything is going to happen overnight when
the ASEAN Economic Community comes into being. We've made progress in some areas
and unfortunately regressed in some areas."
 Some panelists enumerated other matters to be dealt with for a successful launch. Among
them were the communications issues involving the 600 million citizens living in the region,
increasing understanding in business, current visa arrangements, demand for specific skills,
banking connections, and economic differences. Former Philippine National Statistical
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Coordination Board (NSCB) Secretary General Romulo A. Virola, said in 2012 that the
Philippines seems unready to benefit from the integration due to its "wobbly" economic
performance compared to other member states. According to Virola, the Philippines
continues to lag behind in terms of employment rate, tourism, life expectancy, and cellular
subscriptions. Nestor Tan, head of BDO Unibank Inc., said that while some businesses see
the Asian Economic Blueprint (AEC) as an opportunity, the integration would be more of a
threat to local firms. Tan added that protecting the Philippines' agricultural and financial
services sectors, as well as the labour sector, would be necessary for the implementation of
AEC by 2015.Standard & Poor's also believed that banks in the Philippines are not yet
prepared for the tougher competition that would result from the integration. In one of its latest
publications, S&P said banks in the country, although profitable and stable, operate on a
much smaller scale than their counterparts in the region.
 The US Chamber of Commerce has highlighted widespread concern that the much-
anticipated AEC could not be launched by the 2015 deadline. ] In January 2014, former
ASEAN Secretary-General Rodolfo C. Severino, wrote: "while ASEAN should not be
condemned for its members' failure to make good on their commitments, any failure to
deliver will likely lead to a loss of credibility and could mean that member states fall further
behind in the global competition for export markets and foreign direct investment (FDI)". This
is not the first time that AEC faces a probable delay. In 2012, the commencement of the AEC
was postponed to 31 December 2015 from the original plan of 1 January. Despite Secretary-
General Surin Pitsuwan's firm reassurance that "[t]here will be no more delays and that all
ten ASEAN countries will participate", even the most fervent proponents of AEC worried that
AEC would not be delivered on time as December 2015 neared.
 An article published by Vietnam News echoed some of the challenges and opportunities that
Vietnam faces in preparation for the AEC. The article said that the deputy head of the  under
the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Tran Thanh Hai, was concerned about local enterprises'
lack of knowledge of the AEC. It was said that 80% of local enterprises surveyed
acknowledged that they have little information about the interests and challenges available
for them in the ASEAN market. The article also noted that the general secretary of the
Vietnam Steel Association, Chu Duc Khai, said that most of the local steel making
enterprises lack information about doing business in the ASEAN market; they have not had a
chance to study it, and have only exported small amounts of steel to ASEAN countries.
Another challenge is the need to compete with other countries in the ASEAN market to
export raw products since the country had mainly exported raw products. The Asian
Development Bank also has doubts about Cambodia's ability to meet the AEC deadline. The
leading economist of ADB, Jayant Menon, said that Cambodia needs to speed up its
customs reform and to press ahead with automating processes to reduce trade costs and
minimise the opportunities for corruption and be ready for the implementation of its National
Single Window by 2015.
 Despite an ASEAN Economic Community goal of significant economic integration as laid out
in the AEC Blueprint 2025, ASEAN continues to face challenges towards integration. ] A
report published by the Asian Trade Centre in 2019 identified multiple sectors that face
challenges towards integration due to non-tariff barriers that still exist in the region. The
report stated that the goals of the AEC 2025 would not be accomplished if ASEAN fails to
address the issues of non-tariff measures and eliminate non-tariff barriers in the region.

Territorial disputes
Several territorial disputes have affected the unity of ASEAN such as the Cambodian–Thai border
dispute between Cambodia and Thailand, Cambodian–Vietnamese border dispute between
Cambodia and Vietnam, the North Borneo dispute between the Philippines and Malaysia, and
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the South China Sea dispute which includes Vietnam, Brunei, the Philippines, Malaysia, and
possibly Indonesia.

Security
ASEAN is recognized by its members to be one of the main forums to discuss security issues; based
on the principles in its charter, its main aim is to provide an environment of common understanding
and cooperation between the member states to "respond effectively to all forms of threats,
transitional crimes and transboundary challenges".Accordingly, ASEAN has embraced the idea of
cooperative security which means that ASEAN's approach to security issues is through confidence-
building measures and transparency for reducing the tension and conflict between its members.
Security policies and plans are concerted by the ASEAN Political-Security Community to envision "a
concert of Southeast Asian nations, outward looking, living in peace, stability and prosperity, bonded
together in partnership in dynamic development and in a community of caring societies."

Piracy
Piracy in the strait of Malacca and in the Sulu and Celebes Sea is one of the main non-traditional
security threats for the region, it has challenged the capacity of its members to ensure coordination
of effective policy actions to reduce this phenomenon. As highlighted by the ReCAAP report of 2020:
"The increase of incidents (in Asia) during January–June 2020 occurred in Bangladesh, India,
Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, South China Sea and Singapore Strait." The increment of
incidents during 2020, have raised alerts in the region as the phenomenon of piracy could be
fostered by the social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, in their Fourteenth Asean
Ministerial Meeting On Transnational Crime the ministers agreed that ASEAN should embrace a
greater commitment to strengthen the measures in combating transnational crime in the context of
the pandemic. Despite this statement, ASEAN has not updated their plans for combating piracy,
although member states created and enforced the Maritime Security Plan of Action 2018-2020, to
address the national legal enforcement capacities and creating a common protocol of action to
counter piracy allowing the region to cooperate for ensuring the security of the Pacific Ocean, new
discussions and agendas for new measures has not been enforced yet.
Accordingly, this plan reinforces the necessity to secure the seas due to the importance of this
region geographical and economically, its strategic position as the main link between the Indian and
the Pacific Ocean and the region serving as the main passage that connects middle east economies
and India with China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. This plan is mainly focused in three
priorities:

1. Shared Awareness and exchange of best practices.

2. Confidence building measures based on international and regional legal frameworks,
arrangements and cooperation.
3. Capacity building and enhancing cooperation of maritime law enforcement agencies
in the region.
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