The way China split Asean at a dramatic meeting in Kunming last week has exposed a major vacuum that has plagued the regional group for a while. Asean’s strongest link is now its weakest link. It doesn’t have a country or politician to provide strong moral and ideological leadership to get a group of 10 countries at different stages of economic, political and social development into speaking with one voice. How different things were when the regional grouping came into being with just five members in 1967. Then, Asean had a unity of purpose: to make sure that the vacuum left behind by the US military withdrawal from South Vietnam would not be exploited by a communist North Vietnam. Read more
