ASEAN

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is an alliance promoting economic and political cooperation by fostering dialogue among its ten members: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. ASEAN is becoming a major economic powerhouse in the region, having signed free-trade agreements (FTA) with China, Australia, New Zealand, India, Japan, and Korea. But the regional organization faces distinct challenges of late, including, most notably, member countries' disputes over maritime sovereignty in the South China Sea. Experts say the group's lack of diplomatic coherence, differences in strategic priorities, and weak leadership has prevented it from making meaningful progress in negotiating a resolution to the tugs-of-war with China, whose blanket claims over territories in the region have inflamed diplomatic relations in recent years.

Despite the territorial tensions, ASEAN has proved a vital and welcoming partner in Asia for the United States as Washington makes its strategic pivot towards asia. Anxiety over Chinese economic and military expansion has also motivated the United States to deepen engagement with ASEAN and other multilateral institutions to secure U.S. influence in the region. In recent years, Washington has strengthened economic and security ties with ASEAN by joinin the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, attending ASEAN summits, and formally establishing a U.S.-ASEAN annual summit. It has also made strong diplomatic assurances of its commitment to the region with high-profile state visit to countries like Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar.

Addressing Regional Security Issues

ASEAN was formed in 1967 amid the Vietnam War, uniting Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand against the potential threat of a communist-led insurgency. It was originally intended to serve as a security community, promoting social and political stability during a turbulent time in the region, says CFR Senior Fellow Shiela A. Smith.

In addition to preventing intraregional flare-ups, ASEAN provided a way for the countries to create "a voice for themselves in the broader Cold War arena so the Southeast Asian area would speak as one on particular issues," Smith says. To that end, ASEAN signed the Zone of Peace, Freedom, and Neutrality [PDF] accord in 1971. The resolution signaled ASEAN's refusal to be divided along Cold War lines, says Sheldom simon, a professor of political science at Arizona State University.

The fall of the Soviet Union left ASEAN "searching for a new organizing principle for security," Simon says, and ASEAN has since established these forums to address more contemporary challenges:

• ASEAN Regional Forum: Launched in 1993, it aims to promote security in the broader Asia-Pacific region, although the group's contribution has entailed more discussion than action, says Zachary Abuza, a professor of political science at Simmons College in Boston. Still, white papers, military exchanges, and the creation of a register of experts who can be consulted during conflicts have increased transparency and defense cooperation.

• ASEAN Plus Three (APT): Initiated in 1997, it aims to foster collaboration between ASEAN, Japan, China, and South Korea, and was characterized as "the most coherent and substantive pan-Asian grouping" in a recent CFR Council Special Report.

• East Asia Summit: First held in 2005, the summit aims to promote security and prosperity in the region and is attended by heads of state from ASEAN, Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand. Since 2009, China has taken a more aggressive tack in regional disputes over borderlands with India, maritime sovereignty, and the Mekong River, say analysts. CFR's Fellow for Southeast Asia Joshua Kurlantzick warns that countries like Vietnam and Malaysia are "arming up" to protect strategic interests and energy resources in areas like the South China Sea. Investment in arms purchases in Southeast Asia nearly doubled between 2005 and 2009 alone, writes Richard Weitz, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.

Despite the rising level of engagement, experts have pointed out that considerable hurdles to multilateral cooperation remain.

One of the most contentious regional issues has been the escalation of disputes between China and ASEAN members over territorial claims to the resource-rich South China Sea. China, which lays claim to most of the area, has been in a standoff with the Philippines since April 2012 over a reef known as the Scarborough Shoal. It has also disputed overlapping territorial claims with Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei, all of which lay various claims to the clusters of uninhabited islands spanning the sea. While ASEAN has made repeated attempts to resolve the long-standing issue, multilateral discussion has yielded little progress; the group failed, for the first time in its history, to issue a joint communiqué at its annual meeting in July 2012 that would have presented a code of conduct for the region to avoid potential contingencies. China's preference to discuss such issues bilaterally has often exacerbated stalemates, although Beijing's new government has recently expressed willingness to negotiate a code of conduct with ASEAN.