On 8th August 1967, five Southeast Asian countries comprising of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand formed the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to try to response to the then fragile regional political situation and its function was aimed at for economic, social, and cultural cooperation.
The “Bangkok Declaration”, the document upon which association was founded, displayed ASEAN solidarity against communist expansionism and insurgencies, which described as the common problems among countries of Southeast Asia, as well as to also emphasize the grouping’s determination to ensure their stability and security from external interference in any form or manifestation.
In 1976, the ASEAN Secretariat was established to improve coordination among ASEAN members. In the same year, the grouping’s first formal agreement, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) was signed to enshrine one of ASEAN’s fundamental principles: the non-interference.