From Treaty-Making to Treaty-Breaking is the first high-level analysis of ASEAN’s external trade agreements with non-ASEAN states. It clearly sets out the intended, and unintended, consequences of ASEAN’s prevailing method of treaty making, with suggested guidelines for the future. The book begins by asking whether ASEAN trade agreements follow worldwide trends in the substantive content of such agreements. It raises questions such as, to what extent is it possible to continue concluding trade agreements through individual member states? What are the legal consequences—from negotiation and conclusion (treaty making) through to possible breach of the agreements (treaty breaking)? Should ASEAN resort to mixed treaty-making? This study does not seek to give a definitive answer to these questions, rather it opens up the topic to readers by suggesting different possible models for ASEAN trade agreements. This thought-provoking book will appeal to anyone interested in trade negotiations and trade agreements, particularly in Asia.

– Demonstrates the different methods by which ASEAN and its member states have concluded, and how they could better conclude, trade agreements with non-member states: provides a framework of analysis useful to academic researchers and practitioners who examine treaty models

– Links the ASEAN practice of concluding external trade agreements to the practice of other nations and of the EU: particularly valuable to academic researchers and practitioners engaged in the comparative study of regional treaty-making practices

– Presents different models and examines the impacts of each model, with clear guidelines for the future: reviews the substance (content of the agreement), form (single, bundled or mixed agreements), and the rules for dispute settlement for each model

About the ASEAN Integration Through Law book series

Published by Cambridge University Press, this book series evaluates ASEAN’s community-building process and issues at the forefront of ASEAN law and policy. The series covers six themes: the general architecture and aspirations of ASEAN, the governance and management of ASEAN, the legal regimes in ASEAN, the ASEAN Economic Community, ASEAN and the world, and the substantive laws of ASEAN. Click here for the executive summaries of the books in this series.