Lessons from Europe

In June, the United Kingdom (UK) will hold a referendum on whether to stay in or leave the European Union (EU). A few years ago, it was Greece that faced the same dilemma. Although there are different reasons behind these two countries wanting to leave the EU, one underlying similarity is the loss of a degree of sovereignty.

Some 10,000 kilometers away, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has just launched its ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and, in its early inception, is already struggling to make itself relevant, both internally to its member states as well as to the external world.

March 22, 2016