Bringing Europe and Southeast Asia Closer Through ASEAN and the EU

Abstract

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has a long-standing partnership with the European Union (EU). This relationship is not a frivolous one. Many mechanisms for cooperation have been established and numerous projects have been implemented. It began informally in 1972, five years after ASEAN's birth. At the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in July 1977, the dialogue and cooperation was formalized. Dr Surin Pitsuwan, the current secretary general of ASEAN, put it this way in a recent commentary: `Since 1977, ASEAN and the EU have formalized and nurtured their dialogue relations. This was further institutionalized with the signing of the ASEAN-EC Cooperation Agreement on 7 March 1980, and this year, we celebrate its 30th anniversary. Since then, the EU has become an important ASEAN Dialogue Partner. It is also the only regional organization which has a full dialogue partner status with ASEAN' (ASEAN, 2010c).