ASEAN has envisaged the establishment of an Economic Community by 2015, consisting of a single
market and production base and characterised by high competitiveness, equitable economic
development and full integration into the global economy. The master plan guiding its establishment,
the ASEAN Economic Blueprint, was adopted in 2007. The project was led by Thailand and especially
Singapore, which has insisted on the fact that China’s economic dynamism threatens to render
Southeast Asia increasingly marginal. Singapore Prime Minister Lee attempted to persuade ASEAN
partners of the virtues of further economic integration, with a view to compel them to step up their
efforts in this direction: