Engaging ASEAN: What Next for Canada?

On 14 October 2013, Foreign Minister John Baird landed in Vientiane, Laos and made diplomatic and personal history. This was the first official visit by a Canadian serving in that office, and with this visit he was able to tick a highly symbolic box: He had now visited every Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) country.[1] In the Asian Century, it is a diplomatic truism and an economic mantra that the future of the older and more developed economies is found in this region. In other words, the ten countries of ASEAN[2] have the growth and untapped potential that could drive greater trade across the Pacific. Canada has not ignored ASEAN in recent decades. It has been a dialogue partner since 1977, but the warm embrace of Southeast Asia is a more recent phenomena. Ottawa did not appoint an ambassador to the organization until 2009, and Canadas representative to ASEAN is currently filled concurrently by the Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste; it is, tellingly, a part-time job.