The Association of South East Asian Nations or ASEAN was established in 1967 with the primary objective to accelerate growth economically as well as via cultural development and social progress. ASEAN is growing at a rapid speed into a very significant regional organisation. It possesses a certain vision for the year of 2020. The attributes of this vision 2020 are the following:

(i) Its vision 2020 has regarded an outward-looking role in the international community for ASEAN.

(ii) This tends to build on the present ASEAN policy for encouraging negotiations over conflicts within the area. Hence, ASEAN has mediated the cessation of the Cambodian conflict and the East Timor Crisis while meeting annually to discuss East Asian cooperation.

(iii) ASEAN’s strength resides in its policies relating to consultation as well as interaction with member states, with dialogue partners in addition to other non-regional organisations.

(iv) It is a single regional association in Asia which provides a political forum wherein Asian nations as well as main powers can discuss security and political concerns.