The English School and Order: The Case of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

The English School (ES) analytical framework concerning the formation of order in international relations posits that states establish order through rules and institutions within the framework of common interests and values to protect against anarchy. State-centred orders with limited civil society cooperation are pluralistic, while their converse (with a larger role for non-state actors) are solidarist. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established in 1967 by Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, and Indonesia based on common interests, such as strengthening sovereignty and creating stable relations in the face of anarchic problems like communism and internal instability. In numerous conventions ASEAN has adopted various norms, such as respect for the sovereignty of the states, the rule of law, non-use of power, peaceful resolution of disputes, and non-interference in other states. All these norms showed that the primary purpose of ASEAN is to protect state sovereignty and interests and to establish peaceful regional relations. The fact that state sovereignty is at the forefront, with limited cooperation of non-state actors, shows that the ASEAN regional order is pluralist. This article analyses the emergence and appearance of the ASEAN regional order (the unit of analysis) in the context of the ES (the theoretical framework).