ASEAN IN FOCUS

ASEAN Parliament Commits to Stronger Co-op

(Courtesy ASEAN Secretariat News) VIENTIANE, 23 September 2014 – Taking on the theme “Strengthening Parliamentary Cooperation in the ASEAN Community Building,” the 35th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) was held on 15-19 September in the capital of Lao PDR. It was attended by six Speakers and four Deputy-Speakers of AIPA Member Parliaments, Chairs of Committees of the respective parliaments, and eight Observer Parliaments from Australia, Belarus, People’s Republic of China, India, Japan, Russia, Republic […]

Continue Reading →

Why cultural values cannot be ignored in international relations

Author: Kadira Pethiyagoda, Canberra Courtesy East Asia Forum One hundred years ago began the war that was supposed to end all wars. This inauspicious centenary has allowed the foreign affairs commentariat to indulge in one of the things it is best at — drawing historical analogies. It is true that aspects of the global landscape look similar to a century ago. States push the boundaries of international law and act unilaterally, returning to old-school territoriality. A major […]

Continue Reading →

Is bigger better for ASEAN in a mega-regional world?

Author: Razeen Sally, NUS (Courtesy East Asia Forum) Sept. 10, 1014 — Big-block trade agreements or ‘mega-regionals’, revolving around one or more major powers, are the latest trend in trade policy negotiations. ASEAN is involved in two: the American-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Chinese-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). But are mega-regionals good for trade and economic growth? Will they spur regional and global economic integration? And where does ASEAN stand?As of 2013, there were […]

Continue Reading →

ASEAN Formulates a Post-2015 Vision and Strategic Action Plan on Competition

JAKARTA, 11 September 2014 – The ASEAN Experts Group on Competition (AEGC) gathered at the ASEAN Secretariat from 9-10 September to deliberate a post-2015 vision, with new targets and a regional plan of action on competition for the period 2016-2025. The envisaged establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) at the end of 2015 will mark an important milestone on ASEAN’s way towards deeper regional economic integration and community-building. The Brainstorming Meeting was convened in compliance […]

Continue Reading →

Maritime security labelled a priority by ASEAN states

DA NANG, Aug. 28 (PNA/VNS) — Representatives of ASEAN countries met Thursday to review maritime cooperation and security among regional members at the opening of the 5th ASEAN Maritime Forum (AMF-5). Discussions on maritime cooperation in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief as well as the management and protection of maritime ecosystem and biodiversity and aquatic resources were major focuses in the forum as alarming tensions on the sea happened recently. “Maritime cooperation has increasingly become […]

Continue Reading →

Philippines might elevate violations of agreement to ASEAN, says President Aquino

(PUERTO PRINCESA CITY) — President Benigno S. Aquino III said he is against developments being done by other claimant countries in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) and that the Philippines might bring the issue to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). Vietnam, Malaysia, China and other countries are building or improving facilities in islands or atolls they claim, which President Aquino said […]

Continue Reading →
1 … 227 228 229