ASEAN оr the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, international organization established by the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand on 08.08.1967 in Bangkok, Thailand. Later Brunei, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia also joined. There are two observer nations: Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste. It’s purpose is to accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development and to promote peace and security in Southeast Asia. The ASEAN region has a population of more than 600 million and covers a total area of 4.5 million square km. ASEAN countries achieved a new cohesion in the mid-1970s following the changed balance of power in Southeast Asia after the end of the Vietnam War. The region’s dynamic economic growth during the 1970s strengthened the organization, enabling ASEAN to adopt a unified response to Vietnam’s invasion of Cambodia in 1979. ASEAN’s first summit meeting, held in Bali, Indonesia, in 1976, resulted in an agreement on several industrial projects and the signing of a Treaty of Amity and Cooperation and a Declaration of Concord.