The ASEAN-centric Paradigm of International Relations in East Asia

The chapter explores the phenomenon of ASEAN centrality conceived of as a principle and as a feature of the regional integration dynamics in East Asia. The author assumes that in the medium term ASEAN countries will commit substantial resources to maintaining the centrality status rather than taking advantage of it. This hypothesis is underpinned by analyzing the mental and geopolitical origins of centrality, examining the most typical approaches to defining this phenomenon, and identifying challenges to the centrality principle (Association fragmentation, great power rivalries, and Chinese competing integration projects).