Abstract
This article examines ASEAN’s position and strategies regarding the emerging Indo-Pacific politics by employing three elements of actorness—opportunity in the external environments, capacities for internal preference convergence and external engagement, and policy entrepreneurship. It argues that Indonesia’s policy entrepreneurship enabled ASEAN to respond to a new regional opportunity of the emerging Indo-Pacific construct, and ASEAN exhibited limited capabilities in internal preference convergence and the development of institutional influence on external relations as it relied on institutional features of conference diplomacy and the strong chairmanship system. The exploration of actorness in ASEAN’s policy reactions contributes to expanding the comparative scope of actorness research and deepening the theoretical implications of ASEAN’s regional initiatives in the emerging Indo-Pacific regionalism.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Acharya A (1997) Ideas, identity and institution-building: from the “ASEAN Way” to the “Asia–Pacific Way”? The Pacific Rev 10(3):319–346
Acharya A (2019) Why ASEAN’s Indo-Pacific Outlook matters. East Asia Forum (11) Available at https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2019/08/11/why-aseans-indo-pacific-outlook-matters/
Agastia IGBD (2021) Joko Widodo’s fleeting maritime ambitions: an actor-specific analysis of Indonesia’s Global Maritime Fulcrum. J Asian Secur Int Aff 8(3):304–323
Anwar DF (2020) Indonesia and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific. Int Aff 96(1):111–129
Ba AD (2006) Who’s socializing whom? complex engagement in Sino-ASEAN relations. Pacific Rev 19(2):157–179
Belt & Road News (2019) Belt & Road countries trade exceeds $6 trillion from 2013 to 2018, April 20. Available at https://www.beltandroad.news/2019/04/20/belt-road-countries-trade-exceeds-6-trillion-from-2013-to-2018/.
Börzel TA, Risse T (2009) Diffusing (Inter-) regionalism: the EU as a model of regional integration. In: KFG Working Paper Series 7
Bretherton C, Vogler J (2006) The European Union as a global actor, 2nd edn. Routledge, London
Castle M (2018) Embedding regional actors in social and historical context: Australia-New Zealand integration and Asian-Pacific regionalism. Rev Int Stud 44(1):151–173
Chong JI (2018) ASEAN and the challenge of a multipolar world. East Asia Forum (12) Available at https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2018/09/12/asean-and-the-challenge-of-a-multipolar-world/
Chongkittavorn K (2019a) Appraising China’s stance on the AOIP. Bangkok Post (24) Available at https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1756964/appraising-chinas-stance-on-the-aoip
Chongkittavorn K (2019b) ASEAN sets sail with its Indo-Pacific vision. Vera Files Commentary (22) Available at https://verafiles.org/articles/asean-sets-sail-its-indo-pacific-vision
Conceição-Heldt E, Meunier S (2014) Speaking with a single voice: internal cohesiveness and external effectiveness of the EU in global governance. J Eur Pub Policy 21(7):961–979
Delreux T (2014) EU actorness, cohesiveness and effectiveness in environmental affairs. J Eur Pub Policy 21(7):1017–1032
Gehring T, Oberthür S, Mühleck M (2013) European Union actorness in international institutions: why the EU is recognized as an actor in some international institutions, but not in others. J Common Market Stud 51(5):849–865
Groenleer ML, Schaik LG (2007) United we stand? the European Union’s international actorness in the cases of the International Criminal Court and the Kyoto Protocol. J Common Market Stud 45(5):969–998
Ha HT (2019) ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific: old wine in new bottle? Yusof Ishak Institute Perspective 51(June 25)
Haacke J (2003) ASEAN’s diplomatic and security culture: origins, developments and prospects. Routledge Curzon, London
Hoi LJ (2019) Remarks of secretary-general of ASEAN on 7th AURED V on Political Security Cooperation, December 3. Available at https://asean-aipr.org/resources/remarks-of-secretary-general-of-asean-h-e-dato-lim-jock-hoi-7th-asean-un-workshop-regional-dialogue-v-on-political-security-cooperation-focused-collaboration-in-support-of-the-asean-institute-for/.
Hulse M (2014) Actorness beyond the European Union: comparing the international trade actorness of SADC and ECOWAS. J Common Market Stud 52(3):547–565
Hussain N, Hui TM (2018) The Indo-Pacific: clarity, inclusivity and ASEAN centrality. The Asia Dialogue, 21. Available at https://theasiadialogue.com/2018/08/21/the-indo-pacific-clarity-inclusivity-and-asean-centrality/.
Jakarta Post (2018a) Indonesia: partner for peace, security, prosperity, Retno LP Marsudi Foreign Minister, 11. Available at https://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2018/01/10/full-text-indonesia-partner-for-peace-security-prosperity.html.
Jakarta Post (2018b) Indonesia wants ASEAN to take central role in develo** Indo-Pacific cooperation, 29. Available at https://www.thejakartapost.com/seasia/2018/04/29/indonesia-wants-asean-to-take-central-role-in-develo**-indo-pacific-cooperation.html.
Kingdon JW (2003) Agendas, alternatives, and public policies, 2nd edn. Longman, New York
Lee J (2018) The “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” and implications for ASEAN (No. 13). ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
Liu FK (2003) East Asian regionalism: theoretical perspectives. In: Liu F-K, Régnier P (eds) Regionalism in East Asia: paradigm shifting? RoutledgeCurzon, London, pp 3–29
Mattheis F, Wunderlich U (2017) Regional actorness and interregional relations: ASEAN, the EU and Mercosur. J Eur Integ 39(6):723–738
Mintrom M (1997) Policy entrepreneurs and the diffusion of innovation. Am J Polit Sci 41(3):738–770
Murau S, Spandler K (2016) EU, US and ASEAN actorness in G20 financial policy-making: bridging the EU studies–new regionalism divide. J Common Market Stud 54(4):928–943
Nesadurai HES (2003) Globalisation, domestic politics and regionalism: The ASEAN free trade area. Routledge, London
Parameswaran P (2019a) Assessing ASEAN’s new Indo-Pacific Outlook. The Diplomat. Available at https://thediplomat.com/2019/06/assessing-aseans-new-indo-pacific-outlook/.
Parameswaran P (2019b) Termsak Chalermpalanupap on ASEAN’s year in review. The Diplomat. Available at https://thediplomat.com/2019/11/termsak-chalermpalanupap-on-aseans-year-in-review/.
Phuangketkeow S, Ganjanakhundee S (2020) Thailand’s chairmanship of ASEAN: unshackling Thai diplomacy and charting the association’s way forward. ISEAS Perspective 2
Rana PB, Ji X (2020) China’s Belt and Road Initiative: impacts on Asia and policy agenda. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore
Rhinard M, Sjöstedt G (2019) The EU as a global actor: a new conceptualisation four decades after “actorness”. U-Paper 6.
Roberts CB, Widyaningsih E (2015) Indonesian leadership in ASEAN: mediation, agency and extra-regional diplomacy. In: Roberts C, Habir A, Sebastian L (eds) Indonesia’s ascent: power, leadership, and the regional order. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, pp 264–286
Sato K (2003) ASEAN rejimu: ASEAN ni okeru kaigi gaiko no hatten to kadai [The ASEAN regime: developments and tasks of conference diplomacy in ASEAN]. Keiso Shobo, Tokyo
Schunz S, Damro C (2020) Expanding actorness to explain EU external engagement in originally internal policy areas. J Eur Pub Policy 27(1):122–140
Scott D (2019) Indonesia grapples with the Indo-Pacific: outreach, strategic discourse, and diplomacy’. J Curr Southeast Asian Aff 38(2):194–217
Septiari D (2019) Singapore “holds back” adoption of ASEAN Indo-Pacific concept. The Jakarta Post (17) Available at https://www.thejakartapost.com/seasia/2019/06/17/singapore-holds-back-adoption-of-asean-indo-pacific-concept.html
Sjöstedt G (1977) The external role of the European Community. Saxon House, Farnborough
Sukma R (2019) Indonesia ASEAN and sha** the Indo-Pacific idea. East Asia Forum (19) Available at https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2019/11/19/indonesia-asean-and-sha**-the-indo-pacific-idea/
Suryadinata L (2018) Indonesia and its stance on the “Indo-Pacific”. ISEAS Perspective 66
Suzuki S (2014) Goi keisei moderu to shite no ASEAN: kokusai seiji ni okeru gicho-koku seido [ASEAN governance as a consensus-building model: the chairmanship system in international politics]. Tokyo Daigaku Shuppankai, Tokyo
Tan SS (2015) Indonesia among the powers: will ASEAN still matter to Indonesia? In: Roberts C, Habir A, Sebastian L (eds) Indonesia’s ascent: power, leadership, and the regional order. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, pp 287–307
Tan SS (2020) Consigned to hedge: South-east Asia and America’s “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” strategy. Int Aff 96(1):131–148
Tang SM (2018) ASEAN’s tough balancing act. Asia Policy 25(4):48–52
US Department of Defense (2018) Remarks by Secretary Mattis at Plenary Session of the 2018 Shangri-La Dialogue, Available at https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/1538599/remarks-by-secretary-mattis-at-plenary-session-of-the-2018-shangri-la-dialogue/.
Weatherbee DE (2019) Indonesia, ASEAN, and the Indo-Pacific cooperation concept. ISEAS Perspective 47
Wilkins TS (2020) Searching for a middle path: ASEAN and the “Indo Pacific”’. JIIA Policy Brief (11)
Wunderlich JU (2012) The EU an actor sui generis? a comparison of EU and ASEAN actorness. J Common Market Stu 50(4):653–669
Yoshimatsu H (2019) The Indo-Pacific in Japan’s strategy towards India. Contemp Politics 25(4):438–456
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary information
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Yoshimatsu, H. Expanding the study of the EU-centred actorness: ASEAN in the emerging Indo-Pacific construct. Asia Eur J 22, 103–119 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10308-023-00679-5
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10308-023-00679-5