ASEAN Connectivity Regional Integration and Enhancing ASEAN Centrality

Abstract

ASEAN Centrality is an important principle that ASEAN used for conducting with external relations. ASEAN has pursued various measures to promote its centrality which has “ASEAN Connectivity” as the one of its measures. In this way, ASEAN leaders realize that strengthening of ASEAN integration will reinforce ASEAN centrality. So ASEAN Connectivity would be a part of ASEAN Centrality. In this article, ASEAN connectivity refers to (1) physical connectivity, (2) institutional connectivity and (3) people-to-people connectivity. The purpose of this article is to point out the problems that arise with the Singapore-Kunming railway project (SKRL), one of the key strategies for building infrastructure connectivity. The study found that problems in the SKRL project became a limitation that prevented ASEAN for achieving ASEAN Centrality. The problems can be divided into 2 factors: 1) internal factor is the limitations of ASEAN member countries in the budget and technology in construction, especially in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. And 2) external factor is the role of China that has increased as a result of promoting the One Belt, One Road policy. The analysis of the limitation in achieving ASEAN Centrality will consider based on the meaning and characteristic of the ASEAN Centrality concept principally.