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The member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) have observed the Euro crisis that has hit the European Union (EU) since2009. It goes without saying that the EU’s integration path has inspired a similarregional movement in Southeast Asia. ASEAN member countries often refer toevents in the EU. The EU’s prolonged iinancial crisis has not only been instructiveto ASEAN countries, but also changed their perceptions of the EU. In addition, thecrisis has created momentum for ASEAN and EU to re»address their relationship.This article addresses the impact ofthe EU’s financial crisis on the inter-regionalcooperative hamework, expressed through the EU-ASEAN dialogue, ASEAN RegionalForum, and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM). In assessing the impact of the fallout onthe inter-regional relations, data for this study were collected from otiicial documents,a literature review, and interviews with government officials, members of the busi-ness community, and scholars from ASEAN member countries. This article arguesthat ASEAN countries continue to acknowledge the EU as an important partner, butthe characteristics of the inter-regional relations are likely to change. The prolongedfinancial crisis has diminished the Southeast Asians’ perceptions ofthe EU as acompetent economic power, powerful, ther, they recognize that global power hasshilted to Asia. |
