Why in the news?
The 56th Foreign Ministers Meeting(FMM) of the ASEAN was
held in mid-July 2023 with Indonesia occupying the Chair position.
ASEAN-
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations
1. Established in 1967 in Bangkok,
Thailand with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration)
2. Founding Fathers of ASEAN -
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.It functions as an
intergovernmental organization of 10 Southeast Asian countries - Brunei,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam.
3. The regional group has a total
population of 662 million people and a combined GDP of $3.2 trillion.
4. The grouping is headed by a Chair,
whose position rotates annually among member states and a secretariat based in
Jakarta, Indonesia assists the chair.
5. Decisions are taken by consensus,
noninterference in internal affairs and peaceful resolution of conflicts.
Vision of ASEAN:
The Vision of ASEAN is enshrined in the ASEAN Charter, a
constitutional document adopted in 2007 that gave legal recognition and
Institutional framework to the regional grouping.
1. Creating a political community that
secures regional peace and a just, democratic and harmonious environment.
2. An Economic environment that ensures
well-integrated and connected regional economies within the global economic
system.
3. A socio-cultural community that
ensures sustainable development of the region and enhances the standard of
living of ASEAN's citizens.
Challenges in the face of ASEAN:
1. Difficulty in adhering to ASEAN
Charter to maintain its credibility
a) 'ASEAN’s rules-based regimes '
principle gets defied when a "Code of Conduct" between ASEAN &China
has not been concluded yet.
·
Countries like the Philippines are increasing their
military strategic partnership with the US to combat China's assertiveness in
the South China Sea, but China wants a COC without the interference of the USA.
2. The principles of consensus-based
decision making and non-interference in internal affairs are becoming
problematic.
a. With Myanmar being barred from
attending any political level discussions at the ASEAN, it has made it
impossible to decide upon key policy issues by consensus.
b. ASEAN has no option to formulate
effective plans to restore civilian government in the Military-run Myanmar
government because of its non-interference principle.
c. Thailand, defying ASEAN's official
policy held a meeting with the military govt. of Myanmar - indicating diverging
priorities among member states.
3. Actual implementation of ASEAN
Outlook on the Indo-pacific (AOIP) is meager.
a. AOIP's goal is to strengthen
"the principle of ASEAN centrality".
b. But it does not contain any concrete actions or mechanism against the US, China, or other major powers from interfering in its regional affairs.
ASEAN- Significance for India:
1. Strong and united ASEAN in the
Indo-pacific shall ensure regional security and peace for all.
2. ASEAN is a key pillar of India's foreign policy and the foundation of Act East Policy.
3. The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF),
security dialogue forum has enabled India and ASEAN to cooperate and coordinate
on key security issues - rising export of terror, growing radicalization
through ideology of hatred, and spread of extreme violence.
4. ASEAN being India's fourth largest
trading partner.
5. Connectivity between India-ASEAN
countries.
a. India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral
Highway
b. The Kaladan Multi modal Project.
Potential lies in transforming the corridors of connectivity into economic corridors.
