ASEAN Models of Asia-Pacific Security Multilateralism

Abstract

Geographical proximity is one of the key elements in the concept of security interdependence. One country’s security policy often directly affects security calculations and strategic assessments of its neighbors. Security cooperation is thus more desirable at the regional level. In the Asia-Pacific region, the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) exemplifies a political approach to security multilateralism; while the ASEAN Defense Ministerial Meeting Plus (ADMM Plus) highlights a defense approach. This article discusses the origin and nascent development of the ADMM Plus to understand its institutional base and designated functions and tries to provide a fair response to the criticism of being ineffective. It argues that even in response to common transnational security concerns, the regional defense cooperation can hardly be “de-bordered”. Instead of pursuing the institutional design of operational integration, the modus operandi of the ADMM Plus continue to follow the “protocol” of diplomacy. The recently revisited notion of defense diplomacy is useful to explain the rationales of members’ acceptance to the ASEAN-centric arrangements.

地理位置相近是構成安全互賴關係的主要因素之一，一國的安全政 策通常直接影響鄰國的戰略安全評估，因此，多邊安全合作在區域層次 較容易形成。在亞太地區，以東協為制度中心的安全多邊合作模式包括 了以政治途徑為主的東協區域論壇，以及以國防途徑為重的東協擴大防 長會議。本文主要討論後者的源起與初期發展，擬藉由了解其制度運作 基調，以回應一般對東協擴大防長會議效能不彰的評述。本文認為即使 是應對共同的跨國性威脅，國防合作仍無法排除國界的限制；在制度設 計上，東協擴大防長會議仍循外交模式，不以任務執行上的整合為目標； 國防外交概念為各成員國支持這個以東協為中心的制度運作模式提供了 一個註解。