In the post-Cold War era, East Asia is facing various challenges under deepened economic integration and security cooperation at both the international and regional level. These include deepening multilateral economic integration through regional trade agreements, institutionalizing a multilateral security cooperation regime to manage potential disputes and conflicts peacefully, and expanding social interactions for harmony on issues of history.
Although governments and non-governmental organizations in East Asia have strived to manage these challenges, their activities have been limited due to several reasons. The first reason is the gap between domestic demands and international standards. Many non-governmental organizations and forums have played very limited roles in transmitting international changes and demands to their societies because of their domestic-based operations, in such areas of memberships, agendas and management policies. The second reason is the generational disconnection between incumbent leaders and young leaders . Some non-governmental organizations have failed to promote young leaders and expand their international networks because of exclusive and selective membership among social leaders. The third reason is the lack of a functional connection between government and society . Some non-governmental organizations have failed to maintain the durability and consistency of their programs because of their partisan propensity and ideological orientation. Because they have emphasized domestic and local agendas over regional issues, their impact on society has also been very limited. The last reason is the absence of a soft balancer due to regional competition and a lack of mutual understanding . The operations of non-governmental organizations from the United States, Japan and China for regional cooperation have not been active because of the disapproval of their counterparts in other countries.
The Council on East Asian Affairs (CEAA), under the sponsorship of the East Asia Foundation (EAF), was established in October 2005 to deal with such problems
plaguing existing non-governmental organizations and to respond to the demands of the East Asian region. The CEAA is a regional non-governmental organization that brings together East Asian policymakers, business leaders, politicians, journalists and academicians to discuss their pressing mutual concerns. Based in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, the CEAA is expected to be a soft balancer that effectively closes the gap in intermediating interests among East Asian countries. Members of the independent, non-partisan CEAA are drawn from China, Japan, Mongolia, Russia, South Korea, Southeast Asian countries and the United States. It promotes peace, security and prosperity in East Asia by creating and strengthening human networks to enhance knowledge and cooperation.
Copyright (c) 2006 East Asia Foundation.
Hansa Studio. 503. 198-20 Donggyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, Korea 121-819 TEL. 02) 325-2604-6 FAX. 02) 325-2898 E-mail. mail@keaf.org
