Thayer Asia Pacific Regionalism

What is the Asia-Pacific Region? Professor Carl Thayer Presentation to Centre of Defence and Strategic Studies Australian Defence College March 10, 2009

What is a region? Two Views • A region is a territory that is unified by a set of

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common factors such a geographical proximity, climate, economic integration, trade, culture, religion, shared history and/or strategic interaction. A region is an artificial geo-political construct designed by statesmen, academics and others (military and businessmen) to serve a specific policy purpose.

Gareth Evans Evans’’ Eastern Hemisphere

What is a region? • A level of analysis between the systemic (global) level and nation-state level • A way of ordering world politics by drawing boundaries. • Boundaries determine membership; they serve to include as well as exclude. • Regions require a sense of regionalism or regional identity

The ‘region’ and the United Nations • Chapter VI – regional agencies have a role in managing security subject to the overall authority of the UN • Chapter VIII members enjoined to settle local disputes peacefully through regional arrangements before taking up issue with Security Council.

Evolving Conception of AsiaPacific as a region

Asia-Pacific: what’s in a name? • Asia • The Pacific • Asia Pacific • Asia-Pacific • Pacific Asia • Pacific Basin

• Pacific Rim • Pacific

Community

• East Asia • East Asian Summit

• Asia-Pacific

Community

Evolving Conception of Asia-Pacific as a region • Colonial era – The Far East • Pan-Asianism – ‘Asia for the Asiatics’ • Washington Conference 1921-22 • Japan’s Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere (1940) • War in the Pacific (1941-45)

U.S. Pacific Command (1947)

Evolving Conception of Asia-Pacific as a region • 1966 Asian Development Bank • 1960s Pacific Community concept – PAFTAD 1968, PBEC 1969

• 1974 UN Economic and Social

Commission for Asia and the Pacific • 1980 Pacific Economic Cooperation Council - tripartite • 1989 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation

Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation

ASEAN-Driven Regionalism • 1967 Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) • 1994 ASEAN Regional Forum • 1997 ASEAN Plus Three – China, Japan, Korea

• 2005 East Asia Summit • 2020 Asia-Pacific Community?

ASEAN (not Asian) Regional Forum

Asia-Pacific Region: Integrative Factors • Globalization • Growth of intra-regional trade • Sea lines of communication • United States economic and security presence • Multilateral institutions • Ideational factors and norms

Asia-Pacific Region: Factors of Fragmentation • Region –v- sub-region • Divided states (Korea, China) • Conflicting territorial claims • Rogue states (Myanmar, North Korea) • Socio-economic disparities • ‘Arc of instability’ and potential failed states

Kevin Rudd’s Asia Pacific Community • We need to have a vision for an Asia Pacific Community, a vision that embraces:

– A regional institution which spans the entire AsiaPacific region – including the United States, Japan, China, India, Indonesia and the other states of the region – A regional institution which is able to engage in the full spectrum of dialogue, cooperation and action on economic and political matters and future challenges to security • ‘It’s Time to Build an Ania Pacific Community’, Address to the Asia Society AustralAsia Centre, Sydney, June 4, 2008

The ‘region’ and the United Nations Based on tradition, UN members are organised into five regional groups mainly for the purposes of nominating candidates for election. These groups are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Africa Asia Eastern Europe Latin America and the Caribbean Western Europe and Others Group (includes Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States)

Professor Carl Thayer [email protected]