Managing Asia's Core Power Relationship.

• Author: Sylvester, John
• Position: Brief article

MANAGING ASIA'S CORE POWER RELATIONSHIP

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East Asia lacks the formal construct that Europe has in the European Union. There is ample discussion of, but little real movement towards, a full Asian economic entity.

This article notes the May trilateral summit in Beijing of the leaders of China, Japan, and Korea, and sees that as the most realistic mechanism for working out contentious issues and for providing a peaceful framework for the region. ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, founded in 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, lacks the heft needed to shape the power relationships of Asia, even though it now includes Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Korea is caught between two more powerful neighbors. The grand design will have to be shaped by China and Japan. While Japan has...