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Asean needs a non-aggression pact before it’s too late
The Treaty of Amity and Cooperation has kept the peace, mostly. But without an explicit prohibition on aggression, South-east Asia remains vulnerable.
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Thai rangers patrolling the Thai-Cambodian border at Ban Nong Ya Kaeo in Sa Kaeo province, Thailand, on Sept 19.
PHOTO: EPA
Michael Tene
Peace and stability in South-east Asia are constantly threatened by three types of challenges.
First, internal instability within member states, as the crisis in Myanmar shows. Second, disputes between Asean members, such as the Thai-Cambodia conflict. Third, external pressures from great power rivalries. Of these, inter-state disputes pose the gravest challenge to Asean, as preventing them lies at the heart of its founding purpose.
