Analysing the International Political Economy of ASEAN in the Axis of Neoliberal Thought

With the end of the Second World War, major changes and transformations took place in international politics and economics. While the bipolar world order dominated the international system, the international political and economic order changed, and many new nation-states emerged with the liquidation of colonialism. Third World countries sought to integrate into the international system through the non-alignment movement. The relations and agreements established during this period tended to be between actors with close geographical and economic levels of development. At the same time, rapidly increasing global competition allowed states to reorganise their economic and security policies and to participate in regionalisation formations. In this context, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which was founded with the aim of developing political, security, and economic cooperation in the Southeast Asian region, stands out as a unique regionalisation movement. This study analyses ASEAN as an important example of regional integration movements in Southeast Asia. Based on the neo-liberal institutionalist approach, the study analyses the formation and development process of ASEAN and its international political economy. Neoliberal institutionalism is based on the premise that international and regional structures evolve over time to replace state sovereignty. This study assesses the role and effectiveness of ASEAN as an international structure in the liberalisation process in Southeast Asia. The study argues that despite the political, social, and economic differences among ASEAN member states, ASEAN has shown successful growth since its inception and will maintain its effectiveness despite potential regional and global risks.