An analysis of ASEAN's decisionmaking process towards its declaration of Southeast Asia as a zone of peace, freedom and neutrality in 1971.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the decisionmaking process in ASEAN in its policy to declare Southeast Asia as a zone of peace, freedom and neutrality in 1971. Two significant and interrelated factors served as the basis for the ASEAN member states in their decision to establish the ZOPFAN proposal: first, the international and regional security condition during that period; and second, the differing national interests of each ASEAN state members which resulted in a compromise.

The new power pattern in the region forced the ASEAN state members to come up with a scenario that could best protect regional security. Each state realised that its security might be in danger if the regional security situation did not improve. At this point, the ASEAN states decided to collaborate to guard themselves against the worst possible consequences. The fact that ASEAN decided to come up with such an optimistic policy is particularly interesting to observe, because it gives an insight of how the Third World states placed and saw themselves within the Cold War theatre.