Association of South-East Asia

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The Association of Southeast Asia (Association of South-East Asia, ASA) was a relatively short-lived experiment in regional cooperation in South East Asia . The association was established on July 31, 1961 in Bangkok and included Malaya , Thailand and the Philippines .

The ASA was intended as a counterweight to the poorly regarded Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO). The basic idea of ​​the ASA was that economic development and economic progress formed the basis for stable conditions in the states and formed the best guarantee for political independence.

The association flagged within two years with no progress whatsoever and was additionally strained by the dispute between the newly formed Malaysia and the Philippines over Sabah . In addition, Indonesia was also involved in the decline of the ASA under President Sukarno by not recognizing Malaysia as the legitimate successor to Malaya (1963–1964). This also destroyed the establishment of a Malay Confederation between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines ( MAPHILINDO ) shortly after it was founded.

After Sukarno's fall in September 1965, the way was cleared for new opportunities for cooperation and the ASA was briefly reawakened. As a result of an Indonesian initiative and in consolidation of all those relationships that already existed under the ASA and MALPHILINDO alliances, the ASA finally merged into the newly founded ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations). ASEAN retained the structures and the security concept of the ASA.

swell

  • Franz R. Herres: ASEAN - A way out of underdevelopment? Simon & Magiera, Munich 1981, ISBN 3-88676-004-3 .
  • Michael Leifer: Dictionary of the modern politics of South-East Asia. Routledge, London 1996, ISBN 0-415-13821-3 .

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