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National flags of ASEAN members on display
Image: Achmad Ibrahim/AP Photo/picture allianceImage: Achmad Ibrahim/AP Photo/picture alliance

Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)

The organization, which comprises Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, was founded in 1967 to improve cooperation in a region in which the US and China are competing for influence.

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All Content on this topic

Business leaders stand with Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit

ASEAN summit grapples with US-China trade war

The 10-nation group is working to finalize a China-backed deal that could create the world's biggest free trade area.
PoliticsNovember 2, 2019
A US warship docked in Thailand for joint ASEAN naval drills

US-ASEAN naval drills kick off in Southeast Asia

For the first time, the US will conduct naval exercises together with a coalition of Southeast Asian countries.
PoliticsSeptember 2, 2019
Police gather in central Bangkok

Multiple bomb blasts hit Bangkok

Six explosions, one near a famous skyscraper, have hit Thailand's capital.
CatastropheAugust 2, 2019
The ASEAN delegates on stage in Bangkok

ASEAN nations wary of US-China trade row

The bloc's leaders are expected to sign a China-drafted economic partnership deal at their annual meeting in Bangkok.
BusinessJune 22, 2019
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Cost of conflict in South China Sea 'too high'

Singapore's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen said that calling China a regional hegemon was a matter of "opinion."
PoliticsFebruary 18, 201907:52 min
MSC 2019 Ng Eng Hen, Verteidigungsminister von Singapur

Cost of conflict in South China Sea 'too high'

Speaking to DW, Singapore's defense minister dismissed concerns over a major confrontation emerging in the region.
PoliticsFebruary 18, 2019
Hongkong Flugzeugträger USS Ronald Reagan

Can China rival the US Navy in the Pacific?

Beijing has been making big steps recently toward solidifying a sphere of influence in the Asia Pacific.
PoliticsNovember 21, 2018
Containers with EU and China flags

Sieren’s China: Pulling together

The EU needs to forge closer ties in Asia, says DW’s Frank Sieren.
PoliticsNovember 16, 2018
Chinese warships in the western Pacific

Beijing advances 'code of conduct' for S. China Sea

China's premier has hailed progress on an agreement that would "ensure peace and stability" in the strategic sea.
PoliticsNovember 14, 2018
Singapur Merlion Statue, Marina Bay

ASEAN meets in shadow of US-China trade war

The ten-member ASEAN and its partners are meeting amid worries about the negative impacts of the US-China trade row.
BusinessNovember 12, 2018
Logo Weltwirtschaftsforum, World Economic Forum, WEF

Business - World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi, Vietnam

While ASEAN’s GDP has more than doubled over the past decade, inequality remains high, undermining poverty alleviation, threatening social cohesion and slowing economic growth. What are the levers that can build more equal societies and contribute to sustainable progress?
BusinessSeptember 18, 201842:34 min
Three prime ministers: Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Vietnam; Hun Sen, Cambodia; and Thongloun Sisoulith, the leader of Laos at the World Economic forum on ASEAN

Asia's problematic growing wealth gap

Many at this year's WEF on ASEAN are concerned about Asia's wealth gap, but still they struggle to find solutions.
BusinessSeptember 12, 2018
Two Vietnamese women ride their bicycles past a WEF ASEAN sign

The Vietnamese tiger leaps

The World Economic Forum on ASEAN countries has begun in Vietnam — a fitting host given its booming economy.
BusinessSeptember 11, 2018
Singapur ASEAN Gipfel Premierminister Lee Hsien Loong

ASEAN host warns of threats from 'Islamic State'

Singapore's prime minister warned that Islamic State posed a "very real" threat to Southeast Asia.
PoliticsApril 28, 2018
Southeast Asian leaders at the ASEAN 2018 summit in Australia

ASEAN nations defy Trump's trade protectionism

The ASEAN summit concluded in Australia with the Southeast Asian nations taking a firm stance against US protectionism.
PoliticsMarch 18, 2018
Members of the Rohingya community gather in Hyde Park to protest against Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, special summit, in Sydney

Australia protests mar ASEAN summit in Sydney

Demonstrators have rallied against Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and Cambodia's Hun Sen.
PoliticsMarch 17, 2018
Cambodia's Hun Sen and Australia's Malcom Turnbull

Activists call for human rights debate at ASEAN summit

Southeast Asian leaders are gathering for the first ASEAN summit in Australia.
Human RightsMarch 16, 2018
Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ASEAN leaders seated in a semicircle

India, ASEAN agree on maritime cooperation

Ten ASEAN leaders were guests of honor at India's 69th Republic Day celebrations, underscoring the region's importance.
PoliticsJanuary 26, 2018
Bildergalerie Asien 2017 Startbild

A look back at Asia in 2017

2017 in Asia saw China's Xi amassing power, North Korea's Kim's provocative missile tests and a Rohingya refugee crisis.
PoliticsDecember 29, 201711 images
Donald Trump, Rodrigo Duterte, Nguyen Xuan Phuc

Sieren's China: Mr Bean goes to Asia

Donald Trump's 12-day tour might go down in history as being the last attempt to master the shifting of power in Asia.
PoliticsNovember 17, 2017
Philippinen ASEAN Gipfel Protest gegen Trump

Domestic turmoil in the Philippines

Protests against President Trump provide distraction from President Duterte's sinking popularity. Ana P. Santos reports.
SocietyNovember 15, 2017
Philippinen ASEAN Gipfel in Manila

Trump meets Duterte as ASEAN summit opens in Manila

The regional ASEAN summit in Manila got off to an awkward start with a group handshake gone awry.
PoliticsNovember 13, 2017
Manila Philippinen

Donald Trump to meet 'Trump of the East'

A wave of protests has erupted as the Philippines welcome US President Donald Trump. Ana P. Santos reports from Manila.
PoliticsNovember 11, 2017
Filipino soldiers standing at attention by a Philippine flag in Thithu Island in the disputed South China Sea

Duterte scales back building in South China Sea

The Philippine president has scaled back construction plans in the disputed South China Sea after Beijing sent in ships.
ConflictsNovember 8, 2017
USA Trump und Abe in Mar-A-Lago

Trump's symbolic trip to Japan

Donald Trump's first visit to Japan as US president will confirm US security commitments. Julian Ryall reports.
PoliticsNovember 4, 2017
Donald Trump speaking in Indianapolis

Donald Trump to attend ASEAN in November

US President Trump had suggested he would skip the meeting of 10 southeast Asian countries, among them key US allies.
PoliticsSeptember 29, 2017
Philippinen Asean-Ministertreffen in Manila

The ASEAN way: Where is it leading?

For 50 years, ASEAN has given Southeast Asian nations a forum to address conflict, catastrophe and crisis.
PoliticsAugust 7, 2017
Nordkorea Flagge in Pjöngjang

Defiant North Korea refuses to stop nuclear weapons program

North Korea has vowed that "under no circumstances" will it put its nuclear weapons on the negotiating table.
PoliticsAugust 7, 2017
Myanmar Asean-Gipfel in Naypyidaw eröffnet Flaggen

ASEAN countries at a glance

Five decades ago, ASEAN came to life, bringing together an array of ethnic, religious and linguistic groups.
PoliticsAugust 7, 201711 images
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North and South Korean ministers meet briefly

August 7, 201700:32 min
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ASEAN in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

What does the Fourth Industrial Revolution mean to ASEAN, given the region's wide disparity in economic development?
BusinessMay 28, 201726:00 min
Südchinesisches Meer Spratly-Inseln

Long way ahead for China, ASEAN

Will the recently agreed framework for a code of conduct lead to a deal that puts an end to their dispute?
PoliticsMay 22, 2017
WEF meeting on ASEAN 2017

combining autocracy and digital progress

Some 700 people have joined the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Cambodia.
BusinessMay 11, 2017
ASEAN-Gipfel in Manila

North Korea, South China Sea high on ASEAN agenda

Southeast Asian leaders have gathered in the Philippines as tensions on the Korean Peninsula are high on the agenda.
PoliticsApril 29, 2017
ASEAN-Gipfel in Manila

ASEAN 50 years on

50 years ago, ASEAN emerged as a beacon of unity in Southeast Asia. Today the group is beset by a number of challenges.
PoliticsApril 29, 2017
Containerhafen von Singapur

EU, ASEAN ready to restart free trade talks

The EU and the 10-member bloc of Southeast Asian states are to put a trade pact back on the agenda after a 7-year hiatus
BusinessMarch 10, 2017
Südchinesisches Meer Spratly Inseln Luftaufnahme

ASEAN-China diplomatic stalemate?

Tensions are simmering over China's continued military build up in the SCS. Ana P. Santos reports from Manila.
PoliticsFebruary 27, 2017
China Symbolbild Einbruch Wirtschaft Export Börse

RCEP 'no substitute for the TPP'

As the TPP trade pact is on the verge of failure, Asian nations are pinning their hopes on the RCEP agreement.
PoliticsDecember 2, 2016
South China Sea

China wants to "dispel interference" in S. China Sea

At the ASEAN summit, the South China Sea debate has continued to dominate talks.
September 8, 2016
Philippinen China - Südchinesisches Meer, Überwachungsbilder

China accused of secret island building

The Philippines has released images of Chinese boats preparing to build islands on a disputed South China Sea shoal.
September 7, 2016
Bildkombo Barack Obama und Rodrigo Duterte

Obama cancels meeting with Philippine leader

President Obama canceled a meeting with his Filipino counterpart Rodrigo Duterte after insulting remarks.
September 6, 2016
Laos ASEAN-Treffen

US urges ASEAN restraint after SCS ruling

On visit to Asia, US Secretary of State John Kerry offered support for an ASEAN statement that avoided pressing China.
July 27, 2016
South China Sea

ASEAN tones down S. China Sea rebuke to Beijing

The members of the Southeast Asian alliance have dropped a reference to the South China Sea in their joint statement.
July 25, 2016
A fish farm in the South China Sea

S. China Sea ruling overshadows ASEAN summit

The summit marks the first time member states meet after a controversial ruling against China.
July 24, 2016
An intelligent robot attracts plenty of attention during the World Robot Conference in Beijing

Robots threaten millions of jobs in Asia

The UN agency has warned of the severe consequences of automation and disruptive technologies in the ASEAN bloc.
July 9, 2016
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Senior ADB official: Asian economies under pressure

The Asian Development Bank lowers its growth forecast for the region
March 30, 201602:52 min
John Kerry and Wang Yi at a joint press conference in Washington

Sieren's China: More of a dialogue than a fight

At first glance, Beijing and Washington seem to be fighting but a closer look reveals something else, says Frank Sieren.
February 26, 2016
China und Japan Flaggen Archiv 2012

Japan steps up ASEAN engagement

DW examines how Tokyo's drive to boost ties with Southeast Asia is impacting the balance of power in the region.
February 24, 2016
Obama called for "tangible steps" to South China Sea tensions

'Tangible steps' needed in S. China Sea dispute

The US and ASEAN nations have called for a "peaceful resolution" to maritime disputes at a summit in California.
February 17, 2016
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First ASEAN-US Summit in full swing in California

President Obama has invited ASEAN leaders to the US to deepen economic cooperation and security ties. But the region is
February 16, 201601:37 min