East Asia Summit

Subject: International Relations

Section: Groupings

Context: Prime Minister arrives in Indonesia to attend the 18th East-Asia Summit.

Some facts about the East Asia Summit:

The East Asia Summit (EAS) is the Indo-Pacific’s premier forum for strategic dialogue.
It is the only leader-led forum at which all key Indo-Pacific partners meet to discuss political, security and economic challenges facing the region, and has an important role to play in advancing closer regional cooperation.
The concept of East Asia Grouping was first promoted in 1991 by the then Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir bin Mohamad.
The first summit was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 14 December 2005.
The EAS has 18 members – the ten ASEAN countries i.e Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam along with Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States.
ASEAN leads the forum, and the chair position rotates between ASEAN Member States annually.

Some facts about ASEAN:

ASEAN is a political and economic organization aimed primarily at promoting economic growth and regional stability among its members.
It was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) by the founding fathers of ASEAN: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
Current members of ASEAN are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The motto of ASEAN is “One Vision, One Identity, One Community”.
The ASEAN Secretariat is located in Jakarta, Indonesia.

How did ASEAN originate and evolve:

Association of Southeast Asia (ASA), 1961: It was formed by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand to promote economic, cultural, and social cooperation.
Bangkok Declaration, 1967: It formally established the ASEAN.
First ASEAN Summit, 1976: In the summit, member countries pledged to work towards regional peace and stability.
Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), 1976: It established a framework for peaceful relations and cooperation among member states.
ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), 1992: It aimed to create a free trade area among member countries.
ASEAN Charter, 2008: It provides a legal framework for the organization and strengthens its institutional structure.
ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), 2015: It aimed to integrate the economies of member countries and promote regional economic growth.
ASEAN joins Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership(RCEP), 2020: ASEAN members join RCEP, a free trade agreement.