ASEAN was prefigured by an organisation called the Association of Southeast Asia (ASA), a group consisting of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand that was formed in 1961. ASEAN itself was inaugurated on 8 August 1967, when foreign ministers of five countries; Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, signed the ASEAN Declaration, more commonly known as the Bangkok Declaration.
The creation of ASEAN was motivated by a common fear of communism,[14] and a thirst for economic development.
ASEAN grew when Brunei Darussalam became its sixth member on 7 January 1984, barely a week after gaining independence.