Identity/difference and the ASEAN

Abstract

Southeast Asia stands out as the region in the non-Western world that most closely approximates a community. In a region with great political, economic, and cultural diversity, the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN), initially established in 1967 among Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand, has fostered a collective Southeast Asian identity around the norms of non-interference, mutual respect for sovereignty and consensus-building. As a result, in Southeast Asia, the likelihood of war has been significantly reduced among a diverse group of states with histories of conflict.