Nguyen Duy Kui, Ph. D. Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences President of the National Center for Social and Humanitarian Sciences of Vietnam

Established 32 years ago, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has made a great contribution to peace, friendship and cooperation among the countries of the region. Under the influence of ASEAN, States that had not previously had close relations and were even hostile to each other until the mid-1960s gradually became more friendly to each other and made joint efforts to counter the challenges that these States faced both within and outside the region.

So, how was this regional cooperation born? What are its features in comparison with regional cooperation in other parts of the world, and especially with regional cooperation in Western Europe?

The process of developing regional cooperation in South-East Asia

After gaining national independence, the young States of Southeast Asia had to preserve national independence, national sovereignty and find ways to quickly bring their countries out of poverty and backwardness and gradually reach the level of development of the advanced countries of the world. This was not an easy task. After all, the states of Southeast Asia are countries with small and medium-sized territories, economically backward and having a vague idea of the world around them. At the same time, it is a region with an important strategic position and rich mineral resources.

In order to exist and develop, the leaders of the newly independent countries of this region have come to understand that,

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that the Southeast Asian countries should act together and help each other. This circumstance required the development of a concept of regional cooperation of the countries of South-East Asia in the interests of its development, understood as " a common will and hope embodied in the union and cooperation between countries close to each other in geographical location, ethnic composition, language, historical and cultural past, implemented in such areas as politics, security, economy, social problems through the creation of a regional organization and on the basis of binding legal conditions such as general declarations or treaties."

There are favorable objective prerequisites for developing a regional cooperation strategy for the countries of South-East Asia.

It's not just the geographical proximity and size of the territories. The peoples of Southeast Asia, with the exception of Thailand, have experienced the brutal domination of Western colonialists in their history. This difficult past contributed to the rapid establishment of mutual sympathies between the peoples of Southeast Asia. In addition, although there are differences in religious beliefs among Southeast Asian countries (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar are Buddhist, the Philippines are Catholic, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei are Islamic, Singapore and Vietnam are under the influence of Confucianism), in general, the peoples of Southeast Asia are heirs and successors of the rice cultivation culture. This culture has left a deep impression on the way of life and way of thinking of the indigenous population in all countries of the region.

These similarities have created objective favorable conditions for the emergence and development of regional cooperation in this region.

The idea of organizing regional cooperation consciousness has long been born in the minds of some regional leaders. In 1947, DRW President Ho Chi Minh created the Southeast Asian League. The goal of this league was to unite the peoples of Southeast Asia in the struggle against Western colonialism , the common enemy of all the peoples of Southeast Asia.

Three years later, in 1950, under the tutelage of President Al Pidio Quirino of the Philippines (1948-1953), the Baguio Conference was held in Manila. The conference was attended by representatives from Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Australia, Ceylon, India and Pakistan. Various issues of culture and society were discussed at the conference, but no concrete results were achieved.

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Along with efforts to concentrate forces across the region, South-East Asian leaders also sought to engage the peoples of their countries in cooperative activities that would extend beyond South - East Asia. An example of such efforts was the Conference on Asian Relations, held in New Delhi from March 23 to April 2, 1947. It was attended by 18 Asian countries, including 4 Southeast Asian countries-the Philippines, Thailand, Malaya and Myanmar. This conference was held under the auspices of the Indian Council on International Affairs, and its aim was to strengthen cooperation between Asian countries and strengthen the study of the Asian continent. The conference was seen as "the first concrete effort to build unity in Asia." Nevertheless, the first real sprouts of regional cooperation consciousness emerged in the early 1960s. This fundamental factor stimulated the birth and development of a consciousness of regional cooperation, which marked the evolution of the prevailing ideas and ideas of some Southeast Asian leaders in the region: from efforts directed inside the state to efforts on a regional scale. In a speech delivered by Indonesian President General Suharto at a Symposium on Regionalism in Southeast Asia held in Jakarta in March 1975, these changes were confirmed: "In this part of the world, where we now live, we are witnessing the gradual changes that are taking place in the spiritual sphere, ... and today they are marked by a transition from national consciousness to regional and international feelings."

This was also influenced by more general trends. Contacts between the countries of Southeast Asia and the surrounding world are gaining more and more strength. Under the influence of revolutionary changes in the field of science and technology, the process of internationalization of the economy is taking place on a global scale, and states have become dependent on each other in the field of economy.

Regional cooperation is now widespread in almost all developing regions. There was also a renewal of political consciousness.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, there were three options for creating a regional cooperation organization: Malay, Philippine and Thai, which differed in the proposed areas of cooperation, the name of the proposed organization, etc. Nevertheless, the discussion ended with the adoption of a general decision. March 31, 1961 in

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In Bangkok, the leaders of three countries-Thailand, Malaya and the Philippines-created the Association for Regional Cooperation in the Economy and Culture of Southeast Asian Countries, which was called the Association of Southeast Asia (ASA).

The main goals of creating this association were the following::

1. Establish an effective mechanism for study, friendly cooperation and mutual assistance in the economic, cultural, scientific and administrative fields.

2. Provide training in education, vocational training, technology and administrative matters, and provide citizens and officials of the participating countries with adequate research facilities.

3. Exchange information on issues that are of common interest or are the subject of common attention in the fields of economy, culture, education and science.

4. Cooperate in accelerating the study of Southeast Asia.

After the success of the first regional cooperation organization, the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations outlined many projects to further develop the overall idea of cooperation, namely: the conclusion of a trade and maritime cargo transportation agreement between the organization's member countries; the signing of a settlement agreement; and the establishment of a Bank development of South-East Asia; introduction of educational programs for South-East Asia and plans of higher educational institutions and educational organizations in all countries-members of the ACA; establishment of diplomatic missions in the participating countries, preferably at the level of ambassadors; establishment of awards to reward outstanding figures for achievements in the development of culture, economy, social system, technology, education and science in Southeast Asia; organization of sports and cultural festivals in Southeast Asia, etc.

In 1967, events and changes in the region became the driving force for South-East Asian leaders to step up their efforts to create such an organization. During this period, the aggressive war waged by the United States against the people of Vietnam, who were striving for independence and unity, entered a new stage. Beginning in 1964, US military forces rushed to South Vietnam. SUPA also began to escalate the war on .North of Vietnam. However

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already two years after the maximum deployment of military operations in Vietnam, the American people have realized that the continuation of this military adventure not only deprives the United States of hope for final victory, but also inevitably leads to the fact that their country is sinking deeper and deeper into the military quagmire on this front. Moreover, the movement to move their countries out of America's orbit was increasingly unfolding in Thailand and the Philippines, then two important U.S. allies in the region. The situation on the Malacca Peninsula also developed in an unfavorable direction for the pro-Western forces in the region. In July 1966, the British Government announced its intention to phase out all its military commitments in the area east of the Suez Canal in the early 1970s.

Changes in the strategy plan for Southeast Asia in the mid-1960s caused concern among the leaders of some countries in the region. The very fact that Britain announced its withdrawal from the Malacca Peninsula, as well as the possibility of the United States withdrawing from this region at a time when the revolutionary forces in Southeast Asia were gaining strength and the influence of socialism in the region was growing, made the heads of government of these countries think about finding other options in order to ensure state security and avoid drawing the region into the sphere of influence of foreign superpowers. According to the Indonesian Government, the new choice could only consist in strengthening cooperation between the countries of the region in non-military areas.

The idea of creating a new regional cooperation organization originated with the leadership of Indonesian diplomacy. To further develop the idea of creating a new regional cooperation organization, Indonesia contacted some countries in the region, with the exception of those countries where military operations were taking place. The initiative has received strong support from Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia. These non-communist countries of Southeast Asia cooperated with each other, making efforts to create a new regional cooperation organization. With a mandate for action from the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia, Thailand has begun preparing legal documents for the new organization.

In the process of preparing for the establishment of ASEAN, many difficulties had to be overcome. Malaysia has long been adamant that the new regional cooperation organization will be an expanded version of the ACA. Indonesia, on the other hand, put forward a policy of creating ASEAN based on the expansion of the confederation

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MAFILINDO ¹ . And the Philippines offered to connect ASA and MAFILINDO together. These conflicting opinions could not be accepted by either side.

On July 29, 1967, the Jakarta-based Antara Review published an article stating the following:: "The starting point of regional cooperation is common interests, due to the similarity of the stages of economic development, ethnic and cultural proximity. As a result, cooperation should be limited to the framework of common interests in the economy, education, technology and culture. It should not include the areas of politics, security, or military issues, since there are real differences in political terms between the member countries." The Philippines 'position on the goals and objectives of ASEAN was reflected in a Presidential Directive sent to the Foreign Minister before his trip to Bangkok to attend the ASEAN Founding Conference:" Our position is that the new regional organization should not be of a military nature or be an anti-communist alliance. To this end, there can be an open exchange of views on security issues, but each State should be free to determine what it can do to best preserve its liberal institutions."

On August 8, 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was established. In the 1967 Bangkok Declaration, the founders of this regional cooperation organization defined its main goals and objectives as follows::

1. Accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and through common efforts based on a spirit of equality and cooperation to strengthen the foundation for a commonwealth of peaceful and prosperous Southeast Asian nations.

2. To strengthen peace and stability in the region by upholding justice and the rule of law in relations between States in the region, while respecting the principles of the UN Charter.

¹ As noted above, the creation of ASEAN was preceded in 1961 by the creation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASA), which included Thailand, Malaya and the Philippines. And in 1963, the MAFILINDO Confederation was created, which included Malaya, the Philippines and Indonesia. The activities of both these organizations proved ineffective and they quickly collapsed due to contradictions between their member countries. - Translator's note

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3. Strengthen and develop active cooperation and mutual assistance in matters of mutual interest in the economic, social, cultural, scientific, technical, administrative fields, etc.

4. Assist each other in various forms of training, providing funds for research in the field of education, as well as in professional, technical and administrative fields.

5. Implement more effective cooperation for the successful use of each other's agriculture and industrial sectors, expand trade, including international trade in goods, improve means of transport, communications and communications, and improve the standard of living of the population.

6. Develop activities related to Southeast Asian studies.

7. To maintain close mutually beneficial cooperation with international and regional organizations that have similar attitudes, policies and goals, and to look for ways to achieve closer cooperation between these organizations."

The birth of ASEAN marked the maturation of the young independent States of Southeast Asia in political terms. By proclaiming that "the Southeast Asian Nations have the primary responsibility to strengthen economic and social stability in the region and ensure the development of countries on the path of peace and progress", the ASEAN member States have demonstrated their determination to take responsibility for the future development of each country individually and in a timely manner. and the entire region as a whole.

The birth of ASEAN was also a victory for the spirit of harmony and reconciliation among the countries of the region. Speaking about the significance of the establishment of ASEAN, Thai Foreign Minister Thanat Koman said: "For the first time, Southeast Asian countries have come to a fundamental position to overcome the bad habit of moving forward separately, going in different directions, and sometimes even opposing each other, which forced them to turn their backs on each other." Indonesian Foreign Minister Adam Malik, who has done a lot to create ASEAN, noted: "Regional unity has already been achieved, despite the differences created by national interests." The establishment of ASEAN laid the foundation for regional cooperation in Southeast Asia.

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Features of regional cooperation of the ASEAN countries

With the birth of ASEAN, regional cooperation in Southeast Asia has become institutionalized and concrete. But these are not forms of a community, despite the fact that the idea of creating a Southeast Asian community was also put forward by some Thai leaders as early as the early 1960s. In our opinion, ASEAN was created in the form of an association precisely because of the peculiarities of the cultural and historical development of the States of this region.

Unlike in Western Europe, the states of Southeast Asia have never been united in religious terms. Despite the fact that they were influenced by two major Asian cultures, Indian and Chinese, the extent of this influence is different, which makes it easy to distinguish between the culture of Hinduized Southeast Asia and Southeast Asia, which lies in the sphere of influence of Chinese culture.

Due to poor communications and the subsistence nature of the region's economies, there were few opportunities for mutual contacts among the peoples of Southeast Asia.

Cultural and historical features have become favorable prerequisites for the development of nationalism in Southeast Asia. The core of nationalism in this region is patriotism, sincere love for one's homeland, awareness of sovereignty and pride in traditional cultural values. However, due to the peculiarities of the formation and development of closed societies, nationalism in the countries of Southeast Asia also has negative features. In some cases, the understanding of independence and sovereignty was exaggerated, which led to radical manifestations of xenophobia (rejection of everything foreign).

Due to such historical, cultural and religious peculiarities, cooperation in the Southeast Asian region could only be institutionalized in the form of association.

Unlike the principles of the European Union, which provide for decision - making based on the unity of majority opinion, the principle of mushtawarah-unanimity has been established as the principle of decision-making in ASEAN ^.1 This principle was put forward by Indonesian President Suharto back in the 1960s and was adopted by ASEAN leaders as the main decision-making principle of the Association. Mushtawarah has its roots in the ancient traditions of the Malay village community-

¹ In Indonesian, mushtawarah means consultation, discussion. - Translator's note.

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world (including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei). At the village community level, this principle means that "the leader should not be a dictator or impose his own opinion; it is better to delicately hint about the path that the community should follow; at the same time, one should always respect the opinions of all other people, thoroughly study these opinions, and take into account the positions and feelings of these people before making a decision." a universal solution".

The principle of decision-making based on the consent of all the member countries of the Association corresponds to Southeast Asia, a region that consists of many States with different territories and populations that have recently overcome the period of conflict situations. This principle provides small countries with equal rights with large States in solving common problems of the entire Association. This principle guarantees small countries such as Brunei and Singapore that they will not be harassed or excluded from the process of participating in the organization of regional cooperation with countries whose territories and populations are hundreds of times larger than their own. Thus, regional cooperation in Southeast Asia has created a field of equality for all States, all nations, regardless of differences in territorial features, religious and ethnic composition, and cultural traditions.

However, the principle of unanimity has its downside. Achieving unanimity between States that are very different from each other in terms of cultural and economic development requires a long negotiation and consultation process. In some cases, the Association's member countries have not been able to reach a final consensus. Because " the principle of unanimity means that each member state of the Association has the right to veto any decision of ASEAN. Thus, the ASEAN negotiating style means that the Association may have difficulties in making any decision or any joint large-scale project. If a policy or specific project cannot be approved by any one ASEAN member country, then no decision can be taken. And the problem is postponed until the next meeting. Postponing decision-making from one year to the next is a fairly common practice in ASEAN."

In order to overcome, at least to some extent, the negative aspects of the principle of unanimity and strengthen the development of regional cooperation.-

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For example, in the Framework Agreement on Strengthening Economic Cooperation adopted at the 4th ASEAN Summit, held in Singapore in February 1992, ASEAN implemented Principle 6. This principle allows two or more member countries of the Association to implement regional cooperation projects, and provides countries that are not yet ready to participate in these projects with the possibility of "temporary withdrawal", allows you to extend the project implementation time - at a different time compared to other countries. This principle has created the conditions for ASEAN member States to establish relations with each other in the form of trilateral or quadrilateral cooperation. So, ASEAN regional cooperation does not exclude sub-regional cooperation, but creates conditions for its development. Perhaps this is one of the specific features of regional cooperation in Southeast Asia.

A significant difference between ASEAN and the European Union is the organizational structure of these two regional cooperation organizations.

The European Union is organized in the form of a union of European countries with separate legislative, executive and legal bodies (judicial bodies).

The legislative body of the European Union is primarily the European Parliament, which is elected by direct general elections for a 5-year term. ASEAN does not have a similar body. The second major body involved in EU policy-making is the European Council. It includes the Heads of State or Government of the member States.

The highest body of ASEAN that determines its policy is the Summit. During the first 25 years of ASEAN's existence, the frequency of meetings of top leaders of the Association's member countries was not established. High-level meetings are held only when there is a real need for it. Because of this, it would have been nine years after the formation of ASEAN before the first Summit was convened in 1976. If the time interval between the first and second (1977) Summits was only one year, then the third Summit took place only 10 years later - in 1987. It was only after the Fourth Summit, held in 1992, that the frequency of their convocation was regulated. Since that time, the ASEAN summits have been convened every 3 years in order of priority - in accordance with the alphabetical name of the countries. In addition, during the three-year period between the summits, the heads of the state institutions of-

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ASEAN Member States and Governments can meet informally to discuss important policy issues and make decisions on major issues.

Also, the functions of the Council of Ministers of the European Union, which includes the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the EU member states to conduct the current affairs of its organization, and the functions of the ASEAN Ministerial Conferences (AMC), which are held annually by the conferences of Foreign Ministers of the ASEAN member states, do not quite coincide. After the Summit, it is the second most important ASEAN body that outlines and plans Association policies.

In order to plan the implementation of the decisions of Summits and Conferences of Foreign Ministers, ASEAN has a number of different organizations, such as Conferences of Ministers of Economy, Conferences of Industry Ministers, intersectoral conferences, conferences of senior officials, committees, the ASEAN Secretariat (international and national).

ASEAN also does not have a court, which (the European Court of Justice) is located in the organizational structure of the European Union.

As shown above, the EU and ASEAN are different from each other, and their activities are determined by different goals of regional cooperation. In Western Europe, regional cooperation is focused on creating a European State that includes national and ethnic States. From an economic point of view, regional cooperation of the Western European type has led to the birth of an economic union in which member countries use a common currency, the euro. From the point of view of politics, the European Union is really present in the world community as a single whole, with a common foreign policy, with a common security policy. Thus, regional cooperation in Western Europe is a complete and comprehensive integration.

Regional cooperation in South-East Asia does not follow the path discussed above. In the Founding Declaration, supporters of regional cooperation in this region put forward only a policy of accelerating cooperation in the economic, social, cultural, scientific and technical spheres between the member States of the Association.

Today, the member States of this Association are firmly bound together by the economic and political interests that they share. Mutual dependence on each other has become a feature of managing relations between these countries. At the beginning of the XXI century

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Although ASEAN was still an Association of Independent and Sovereign States, it did not reach the level of a union, as it did in Western Europe. And in the "Vision of ASEAN - 2020" concept, the leaders of this Association also outlined only the prospect of developing "a harmonious group of peoples of Southeast Asia, open, living in peace, stability and prosperity, connected by dynamically developing relations of cooperation, forming a community of societies living on the principles of mutual assistance and mutual assistance.

Full integration like the European Union would require the ASEAN member States to be prepared to sacrifice part of their national sovereignty, to accept regional power that would include national power. The countries of Southeast Asia are not ready for this. Just before the formation of ASEAN, the then President of the Philippines, D. Macapagal, expressed this understanding of regional cooperation: "Cooperation is necessary to solve common problems, but sovereignty must be preserved." Thus, regional cooperation in South - East Asia aims to promote cooperative relations between countries in the region, but they do not sacrifice their national sovereignty. Perhaps this is the main and most fundamental feature of regional cooperation in this region.

Another important distinguishing feature of regional cooperation in Southeast Asia is that it involves all States, all peoples of the region, regardless of the political system and ideological views. This participation is carried out gradually and on an increasing trajectory.

The stages in the development of South-East Asian regional cooperation can be described as follows: ASA (1961) - > MAFILINDO(1963) - > ASEAN-5 (1967) and ASEAN-6 (1984) - > ASEAN-7 (1995); - > ASEAN-9 (1997); -> ASEAN-10 (1999). Each step forward in this process was not just an increase in the number of members, but also a milestone that marked the level of regional cooperation among countries in the region.

The path from ASEAN-6 to ASEAN-7 was a turning point in the history of regional cooperation in Southeast Asia. Vietnam's accession to ASEAN marked the beginning of the participation of the region's countries in regional cooperation with different political systems and ideological views.

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ASEAN regional cooperation is designed to help its members respond effectively to the challenges they faced in the post-cold war period.

At present, the process of globalization has developed powerfully and on a scale that has never been seen before. Globalization has not only brought ASEAN opportunities for development, but also unforeseen dangers. Globalization in the economy means that flows of capital, investment, technology, and trade can flow freely across national borders. According to this understanding, globalization is a certain factor of further development. It can bring developing countries external sources of strength that complement their internal sources, and this is possible in a very short period of time. But there are also threats to development. The recent currency and financial crisis in our region has shown this.

The regionalism trend-as a reaction to the negative impacts of globalization

The regional integration of the industrialized countries took place simultaneously with the establishment of customs barriers and countless non-customs barriers in order to limit the entry of goods from developing countries( including goods from ASEAN countries) into this economic bloc. In response, ASEAN decided to take economic cooperation to a new level, deepening regional economic integration. This process should begin with the creation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) within 15 years, then this period was reduced to 10 years.

The nature of ASEAN regional cooperation has changed at both the economic and political levels. There is closed and open regional cooperation, which differ significantly in economic terms:

First, in the course of closed regional cooperation, a policy of integration through institutionalization (encouraging the creation of organizations, joint public associations under the auspices of ASEAN) is pursued, which is stimulated by political methods, while in the case of open cooperation, a policy of market integration is pursued, which is stimulated by the market.

Secondly, regional closed cooperation is carried out between economies with similar levels of development, while regional closed cooperation is carried out between economies with similar levels of development.

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Open regional cooperation is carried out between economies with different levels of development.

Third, closed regional cooperation focuses internally and on the division of the internal market, while open regional cooperation focuses externally and contributes to attracting external sources of power.

In political terms:

Closed regional cooperation focuses on countering hostile countries and encouraging cooperation among like - minded States, while open regional cooperation focuses on broad cooperation to respond to fluctuations in the strategic environment in the Asia-Pacific region, encouraging confidence-building measures.

A qualitative shift in the content of regional cooperation in South-East Asia is currently the result of a process of continuous renewal of the regional and broader international consciousness of the region's leaders. Thanks to this renewal, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has made significant political and economic achievements over the years. Open regional cooperation will be another important guarantee, thanks to which Southeast Asia will continue to attract external sources of energy for the development of each country, the entire region.

ASEAN regional cooperation, with its distinctive features, as shown above, constitutes the favorable circumstances that are necessary for the development of all ASEAN countries, including its new members. By participating in regional cooperation, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar get a chance to share the sources of development forces (capital, funds, markets, technology, engineering, management) with other member countries of the Association that have a higher level of development. Nevertheless, it should be noted that ASEAN's regional cooperation will undoubtedly pose considerable challenges to its new members. Perhaps one of these tests will be the division of not so abundant sources of power and capital of these countries with the founding countries of the Association.

Expanding regional cooperation and enriching it is a prerequisite for the development of Southeast Asia in the coming years. The ability of the ASEAN countries to implement their Vision 2020 vision will largely depend on the sustainable development of regional cooperation among the Association's members.

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