Multilateralism in East Asia: Less than the Sum of Its Parts?

The East Asian region is famous for many things, among the more surprising of which is the relatively ineffective nature of its multilateral institutions. Although many scholars claim that organizations such as Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) have been effective parts of regional diplomacy, this article suggests that the so-called ASEAN Way has provided a template for regional under achievement and ineffectiveness. As a consequence, and despite a recent flurry of regional initiatives, none of them has been anything like as significant or effective as the European Union was at the height of its powers. This is the unsurprising consequence of institutional design and the politics of the lowest common denominator. The rise of China is unlikely to change this. On contrary, not only has ASEAN solidarity fractured in the face of an increasingly assertive China, but China’s own instrumental attitude to institutional development means that under-performance is likely to remain the regional norm as an array of ineffective institutions compete for authority and relevance.