ASEAN has come a long way since the five foreign ministers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand came together in Bangkok in August 1967 to establish an organization that would promote economic and social cooperation. Since then, ASEAN has evolved from a loose and informal association into a Community of ten states encompassing political-security, economic, and socio-cultural ...

The Philippines takes over the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2017 coinciding with the organization’s historic 50th anniversary. The Philippines only had the opportunity to chair ASEAN four times in five decades. This is understandable in an organization which started only to hold annual summits after almost three decades of existence.

The Philippine Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2017 is an opportune time to revive the National Branding Council proposal made by the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) in 20121 to build the international image and reputation of the country. Nation Branding is an important tool in managing a country’s identity across the globe forming part of public diplomacy (PD). PD covers aspects such as ...

In an interview a few days ahead of the 2018 ASEAN-Australia Special Summit, Indonesian President Joko Widodo responded approvingly to the question of Australia’s membership to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). While some analysts consider it as a gracious response to recognize the contributions of Australia as an important bilateral and regional diplomatic partner, others regard ...

The BRI seeks to build on the legacy of the traditional Silk Road as a venue for peaceful trade and harmonious cultural exchange. While the BRI is framed as a noble endeavor based on mutual benefit principle, many scholars consider the initiative as China’s strategy to strengthen global economic leverage and assert its global leadership role. The great concern for Central Asia lies in BRI’s probability ...

After the successful hosting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, what is next for Philippine economic diplomacy in 2016? The presidential election in May 2016 provides an opportunity for the country to assess and recalibrate its policies to achieve the national interest. In the Department of Foreign Affairs, one policy that has been emphasized and will continue to be important is the promotion ...

In the last two years, a spate of press releases on disaster risk management underscored the value of strong Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) policies and programs, both in the local and international levels. In March 2015, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) released the Global Assessment Report (GAR) on DRR in which it noted that a country’s development may only be truly ...

In October 2016, Burundi, South Africa, and Gambia withdrew from the International Criminal Court (ICC), a decision believed to be rooted in the Court’s alleged bias against Africans. The ICC, thus far, has indicted 36 people – all of whom are Africans. Moreover, nine out of the ten investigations it is currently working on involve Africans. This has caused lingering doubt on the integrity of the ...

On 28 June 2016, Kazakhstan won a non-permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) after outvoting ASEAN-backed Thailand to represent the Asia-Pacific in the UN body. Kazakhstan will serve for a two-year term starting this year, alongside non-permanent members Japan, Egypt, Ukraine, Uruguay, Senegal, Sweden, Bolivia, and Ethiopia – the latter three being newly elected non-permanent ...

The Philippines, as the APEC 2015 host country, played a crucial role in highlighting the importance of achieving inclusive economic growth and incorporating a development dimension in the form of sustained poverty reduction, productive employment, enhanced health conditions, better education, and higher quality of life. But what is needed in order to achieve inclusive growth for the Philippines? ...