In addition, the ASEAN members historically have been reluctant to encourage either,
stemming from a fear of impinging on ASEAN’s long-held principles of non-interference and
consensus. Failure to integrate ASEAN’s diverse situations means that the group will lose opportunities
to regional competitors. This tension between the need to integrate and the reluctance to
yield national sovereignty is therefore the main factor affecting the future implementation of the
ASEAN Charter. Compared with the EU’s developmental experiences, ASEAN’s endeavours
towards deeper integration seem both slower and weaker. Not only ASEAN Member States’
diverse background, but their reluctance to surrender some levels of sovereignty make
ASEAN’s goal for deeper integration a goal in name and form only. With ASEAN Member
States’ competitive positions, most of them tend to depend much more on exporting to North
America or Europe than to their neighbours. Regional integration has thus developed slowly.
109 Tan, above n.11.
110 Hew, above n.61.
Chinese JIL (2010)
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This article therefore argues that certain steps—including a supranational institution, a uniform
legal system and a review mechanism for dispute resolution—are necessary to achieve a thriving
EU-style bloc. The ASEAN Charter alone does not provide a sufficient framework. Simply
signing a joint agreement or diplomatic compromise is an insufficient measure to achieve the
goal of better and deeper integration. On the other hand, whether moving in the direction of
deeper integration stands for a better future or more efficient system within regional membership
remains a question.