ASEAN - The mission of "small countries leading big countries"

(Baonghean) - On August 8, 2017, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) celebrated its 50th anniversary. To mark this occasion, Bao Nghe An newspaper presents an article by Associate Professor, Doctor, Major General Le Van Cuong, former Director of the Institute of Strategic Science, Ministry of Public Security, on the founding process; achievements over 50 years; opportunities and challenges of the bloc…

Heads of delegations from ASEAN countries at the 30th ASEAN Summit in the Republic of the Philippines.

1. Development process

ASEAN – the Association of Southeast Asian Nations – was established on August 8, 1967, in Bangkok with five original members: Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore. Brunei was added in 1984.

The Bangkok Declaration of 1976 defines the association's mission and objectives as: To promote economic development, social progress, and cultural development in the region to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community of Southeast Asian nations; to ensure peace and stability in the region based on respect for justice and the rule of law in relations between nations and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter; to promote active cooperation and mutual assistance in the economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific, and administrative fields; and to maintain close and mutually beneficial cooperation with international and regional organizations that share similar goals. The most important document of ASEAN is the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation. ASEAN operates on the principle of consensus at all levels and on all issues (known as the principle of agreement).

From 1967 to the present, ASEAN has developed through two basic stages.

- Phase 1: (from 1967 to the end of 1991).

This period was primarily focused on political and security cooperation and responding to external challenges. Economic and cultural cooperation among the six countries remained very loose and weak. It can be said that political and security cooperation was the central focus of ASEAN during the period 1967–1991.

- Phase 2 (from 1992 to the present).

With the end of the Cold War (1991), in the new context of the international order, ASEAN adjusted its model, methods, content, and scope of cooperation, shifting from political and security cooperation to economic cooperation as the focus, culminating in the formation of the ASEAN Community with three pillars: the Economic Community, the Political-Security Community, and the Socio-Cultural Community in December 2015.

2. Achievements of ASEAN over 50 years.

- Regarding economic cooperation.

ASEAN has a roadmap for economic cooperation, progressing from lower to higher levels, from sectoral cooperation to comprehensive cooperation, and from loose to close ties. At the 4th ASEAN Summit in January 1992, ASEAN set the goal of "Establishing a Free Trade Area" (AFTA) within 15 years and ratified the "Common Effective Tariff Programme".

Following the financial crisis that began in Thailand in July 1997, ASEAN began expanding its economic ties with regional powers. Under ASEAN's chairmanship, the first ASEAN+3 Summit (leaders from the 10 ASEAN countries and leaders from China, Japan, and South Korea) in December 1997 achieved unexpected success. Even though at that time, the GDP of the 10 ASEAN countries accounted for only 10% of the total GDP of ASEAN+3, while the three partners China, Japan, and South Korea dominated, accounting for 90% of the total GDP, ASEAN played a central role in connecting and fostering cooperation in East Asia – the world's most dynamic and successful economic region. The 10 ASEAN countries needed to cooperate with Japan, China, and South Korea; conversely, the three Northeast Asian economic powers also needed to expand their ties and cooperation with ASEAN countries.

Through cooperation with the three major economic powers of China, Japan, and South Korea, ASEAN countries have the conditions to realize the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA). AFTA is an important tool for leveraging the scale of the economy and comparative advantages of each ASEAN member state to achieve rapid, efficient, and sustainable development.

The rapid removal of tariffs has fueled the rapid and dynamic economic growth of ASEAN member countries. From January 1, 2005, import tariffs on nearly 99% of products from the top six countries (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, and Brunei) were below 5%, with over 60% of these products being tariff-free. A notable result of the ASEAN Free Trade Area is the increase in intra-ASEAN trade from 5% in 1991 to 21% in 2016.

In January 2007, ASEAN countries decided to establish the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) with four objectives: 1. To build a unified market and production base; 2. A competitive economic region; 3. To create equitable development within the bloc; 4. A region integrated with the global economy.

By the end of 2015, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) was officially established, marking a significant and landmark step forward.

Economically, after 50 years of establishment, it has transformed from a group of poor, fragmented countries into a unified economic region with 623 million people, a total GDP of over US$2.6 trillion (7th globally), and trade turnover reaching US$2.53 trillion (4th globally).

ASEAN has become an economic powerhouse in East Asia in particular, and the Asia-Pacific region in general.

- Regarding politics and security.

The formation of the ASEAN Community with its three pillars: 1. Economic Community; 2. Political-Security Community; 3. Socio-Cultural Community at the end of 2015, marked a significant step forward for ASEAN countries. Overcoming the anxieties, caution, and lack of trust they experienced in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, ASEAN nations came together, joining hands in a determined effort to build a regional political and security community. This represents a major leap forward in the political and security awareness of the 10 ASEAN countries.

Since the late first decade of the 21st century, both China and the United States have been striving to draw ASEAN closer to their respective sides. ASEAN has become an entity, a crucial factor in building and maintaining political stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region.

History has placed ASEAN at the center of connectivity, conflict resolution, and cooperation for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the Asia-Pacific region.

Since the 1990s, the Asia-Pacific region has become one of the most dynamic economic regions in the world and the engine of the global economy. Establishing and maintaining a peaceful and stable environment for this strategic region necessitates the formation of a regional security forum with ASEAN at its center. In 1994, the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) was established.

The Asia-Pacific Regional Security Forum (ARF), spearheaded by ASEAN, has invited key ASEAN partners to participate in discussions on ensuring regional security.

Currently, the ARF Forum has 27 members participating in discussions on strategic issues such as "Building Strategic Trust," "Implementing Preventive Diplomacy," etc., aiming to proactively resolve disputes and conflicts in the region. After 23 years of operation (1994-2017), the ASEAN-led ARF Security Forum has made a decisive contribution to ensuring peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the Asia-Pacific region, one of the world's most economically dynamic regions but also one containing many acute conflicts of the modern era.

Leading the ARF forum to ensure peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region for nearly a quarter of a century is a tremendous success for ASEAN in the political and security fields.

Through its leadership of the ASEAN Regional Security Forum (ARF), ASEAN has achieved the remarkable feat of "small countries leading large countries".

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attended the meeting between ASEAN Leaders and representatives of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) as part of the 30th ASEAN Summit.

3. Challenges and Opportunities

ASEAN, comprising 10 poor and developing countries, is one of the most successful integrated regions, with some even considering it a model for integration among developing countries.

Currently, ASEAN is facing many challenges, but also opportunities that can and should be seized to continue its development.

- Challenges for ASEAN: There are both internal and external challenges.

The internal challenges include several issues: 1. Uneven levels of development; 2. The economic structures of ASEAN countries are quite similar in many fundamental aspects; 3. Some countries face issues of national separatism and religious conflict (Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand).

External challenges facing ASEAN: 1. International terrorist organizations such as IS and al-Qaeda, after suffering heavy defeats in Iraq and Syria, are shifting their operations to ASEAN countries, primarily island nations like the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia; 2. The US is implementing protectionist trade policies; Europe is grappling with populism, anti-international integration movements, and economic globalization; Latin America is in crisis. These issues significantly impact ASEAN's trade and investment activities; 3. China and the US are increasingly involved in ASEAN, drawing ASEAN countries into alliances serving their geopolitical goals. The Sino-American competition poses a major challenge to ASEAN in understanding and responding to external pressures.

- Major opportunities for ASEAN: 1. ASEAN has achieved significant progress in economic integration, political and security cooperation, and possesses extensive experience in addressing internal and external challenges; 2. Major powers within and outside the region, such as China, the US, Japan, India, Russia, Australia, South Korea, and the EU, all have a need to promote and expand cooperation with ASEAN; 3. ASEAN holds a crucial geopolitical, geostrategic, and geoeconomic position in the Asia-Pacific region – the leading economic hub of the world.

For ASEAN, the challenges are considerable, but the opportunities are also vast and come from many directions. The difficulties ASEAN has overcome and the tremendous achievements it has attained over the past 50 years illuminate a valuable lesson: “When the 10 ASEAN countries are united, and only through unity, ASEAN will surely overcome all challenges and seize opportunities to continue developing and enhancing its role as a connecting and leading center for the political and security structure of the Asia-Pacific, confidently and proudly fulfilling its mission of ‘Small nations leading large nations’.”

LE VAN CUONG