By Mehmet Enes Beşer ASEAN has spent much of its life doing a particular kind of political magic: holding a diverse region together by refusing to pretend its members are the same. Different systems, different threat perceptions, different economic models—yet a shared habit of consultation. For decades, the “ASEAN way” wasn’t a punchline. It was a practical technology for preventing ...
Only Bold Leadership Can Save It By Mehmet Enes Beşer ASEAN has, now for over two decades, been a balm of East Asian diplomacy—a convenor of regional gatherings, a guarantor of neutrality, and a symbol of collective muscle for small and medium powers. Its “centrality” dogma has come to pass from rhetoric; it has been an integral part of the ...