ASEAN (2003). ASEAN Concord II Statement (Bali Concord II) [online] Available at: [accessed July 4, 2020]. ASEAN Regional Forum. The multilateral group of twenty-seven members was established in 1993 to facilitate regional confidence-building and preventive diplomacy on political and security issues. The forum represents a wide range of voices – including ASEAN, its dialogue partners, North Korea and Pakistan – but is often involved in geopolitical disputes that limit its effectiveness. On July 22, the 10th ASEAN Plus Three (ASEAN+3) Foreign Ministers` Meeting was held in Phuket, Thailand. The foreign ministers expressed concern about the DPRK`s recent nuclear tests and missile launches and urged the DPRK to comply with its obligations under UN Security Council resolutions. They also called for the early resumption of the Six-Party Talks and the possible use of the RFA as a regional security forum in which all participants in the Six-Party Talks participated. Membership doubled in the late 1990s. The resolution of the Cambodian civil war in 1991, the end of the Cold War, and the normalization of U.S.-Vietnam relations in 1995 brought relative peace to the Southeast Asian continent and paved the way for more states to join ASEAN. With the inclusion of Brunei (1984), Vietnam (1995), Laos and Myanmar (1997) and Cambodia (1999), the group began to launch initiatives to promote regionalism.
For example, in 1995, members signed a treaty waiving the development, acquisition or possession of nuclear weapons. The 1. and 2. In June, the leaders of ASEAN and the Republic of Korea met on Jeju Island to commemorate the 20th anniversary of ASEAN-ROK relations. At the summit, they discussed the current situation on the Korean Peninsula and condemned the DPRK`s “recent underground nuclear tests and missile launches.” Their statement called the tests “clear violations of the six-party agreements and relevant UN Security Council resolutions and decisions” and called for “an early resumption of the six-party talks.” The United States is ASEAN`s fourth-largest trading partner in terms of goods, behind China, the European Union and Japan. Merchandise trade between the two sides reached more than $292 billion in 2019. The United States has launched subregional and bilateral initiatives to strengthen relations, including the Lower Mekong Initiative, which aims to deepen cooperation between the United States and ASEAN members, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam on environmental, health, education, and infrastructure development issues. Four ASEAN members – Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam – signed the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, formerly known as the TPP, a free trade agreement that the United States participated in negotiating. However, Washington`s withdrawal from the TPP shortly after Trump took office in 2017 set back broader U.S. efforts to demonstrate its commitment to the region`s growing trade integration.
The United States is not part of the RCEP trade agreement. ASEAN`s goal is to promote economic and cultural exchanges among its member countries, maintain peace and stability in Southeast Asia, and establish relations with foreign powers with similar goals. ASEAN was founded during the Cold War to promote stability and cooperation in a politically turbulent region. At the end of the 36th ASEAN Summit, the recurring question remains to be clarified as to the extent to which ASEAN as a regional organization is united and responsive in responding to regional and international issues, particularly with regard to political and security concerns in the region within the meaning of the APSC, which was adopted at the 14th ASEAN Summit in Thailand in 2009. The 11th ASEAN Summit was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from 12 to 14 September. An important step was the signing of a declaration on the establishment of the ASEAN Charter by its leaders. At the summit, a group of eminent personalities of the ASEAN Charter was established, composed of 10 highly respected and respected citizens of ASEAN member states, to review the direction of ASEAN and the nature of the Charter and to make recommendations. Successes such as the implementation of the ASEAN Security Community, the establishment of the Inter-Sector Support Group on Confidence-Building and Preventive Diplomacy, and the establishment of the ASEAN-China Joint Working Group on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea were duly noted. The leaders welcomed the 4th and 5th rounds of six-party talks held in Beijing in July and November and called on all parties concerned to do their best to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.
They strongly condemned terrorism and reaffirmed the need to intensify their efforts to eliminate the causes of terrorism at the bilateral, regional and multilateral levels. Leaders also recognized the role of interreligious dialogue in combating the spread of terrorism and promoting understanding. The Foreign Ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations met in Bangkok on 24-25 July for the 33rd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, chaired by Thai Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan. The Ministers welcomed the progress made in the implementation of the SEANWFZ Treaty and noted with satisfaction the establishment of all the various bodies provided for in the Treaty and the work carried out by those bodies, including consultations with the International Atomic Energy Agency. They welcomed China`s announcement in July 1999 that it would accede to the Protocol to the Treaty and called on other non-governmental entities to exercise greater flexibility in consultations on the Protocol. Ministers reaffirmed the importance of confidence-building measures and PNR in intra-regional relations and stressed the importance for defence and military officials to continue to participate in the FRA process. On 12 February, Secretary-General Le Luong Minh delivered a speech reaffirming the importance of the IAEA safeguards system. He stressed the crucial role played by the IAEA in the euro area and encouraged ASEAN member States to cooperate fully with the IAEA. Chachavalpongpun, P. (2015). Flaws in ASEAN`s community-building effort, The Japan Times [online]Available at: [Accessed July 4, 2020].
Nevertheless, the INTENTION OF THE APSC to elevate THE SAA`s security cooperation to a “higher level” has not yet been realized by improving the capacity of ASEAN institutions to peacefully resolve conflicts with little or no use of international or extra-regional institutions and mechanisms to resolve regional disputes. .