The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established on August 8, 1967 in Bangkok by the five original Member Countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand (ASEAN). It has since been joined by Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia. The objectives of ASEAN are to accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region through joint endeavors, and to do so in the spirit of partnership to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community of Southeast Asian nations. It promotes regional peace and stability through abiding respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationship among countries in the region, and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter.
ASEAN plans to establish by 2020 a Zone of Peace, Freedom, and Neutrality, "where each nation is at peace with itself and where the causes for conflict have been eliminated through abiding respect for justice and the rule of law and through the strengthening of national and regional resilience" (ASEAN Vision 2020). It envisions territorial and other disputes resolved by peaceful means, with the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia functioning as a binding code of conduct for the members' governments and peoples, to which other states in the region and other interests in the region adhere. The area will be free of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction. The ASEAN Regional Forum will be an established means for confidence-building and preventive diplomacy for promoting conflict-resolution. ASEAN will be a force for peace, justice, and moderation in the Asia-Pacific area and in the world.
Traditional diplomatic methods for conflict resolution include: power politics, which uses threats of force, defensive alliances, economic sanctions, bargaining as a tradeoff of interests, and power mediation; conflict transformation, with problem-solvin...