Institutional Mechanisms and Maritime Development Cooperation: Building a Context for India-Japan-ASEAN

This chapter examines the possible role of India-Japan-ASEAN triangularity in three partially overlapping regions that make up the Indo-Pacific, such as the Pacific Rim, East Asia and the Indian Ocean region. In particular, it focuses on institution-building, institutional mechanisms, and maritime development cooperation that contributes to institution-building in these regions. However, since ASEAN is itself an institution and a group of partners in development cooperation, the chapter also considers ASEAN itself. Furthermore, while the emergence of the Indo-Pacific construct has been influencing macro-level dynamics in the Asia-Pacific, the proliferation of overlapping minilateral formats, especially among middle powers, has contributed to both reshaping and possibly fragmenting the region. This chapter addresses some of the minilateral dynamics relevant to India, Japan and ASEAN relations. It concludes by examining the role that India-Japan-ASEAN triangularity can play in integrating Asia and the super-regional Indo-Pacific.