ASEAN: Neutral or Neutered?

ASEAN: Neutral or Neutered?

The Association of South-east Asian Nation's (ASEAN) failure to issue a communique at the end of the ministerial meeting hosted in Cambodia last week shocked many.

Reports indicate the drafting floundered on the issue of the South China Sea where the sovereignty of different islets is disputed.

The Philippines wished to record that the matter had been discussed whereas Cambodia, which currently chairs the group, felt that any mention would compromise ASEAN neutrality. The claims in the South China Sea were never going to be resolved by a statement, however worded. As such, the quite unprecedented failure shows up not so much the struggle to deal with a sensitive issue but, rather, what it may suggest are more systemic concerns about divisions within ASEAN.

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