The EU’s role in developing security cooperation with Myanmar at the ASEAN Regional Forum: 2004-2008

This article tracks the European Union’s efforts at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), from 2004 to 2008, to encourage Myanmar directly or indirectly to engage in security cooperation. It, then, explores Myanmar and ASEAN’s reactions to the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis to Myanmar’s Irrawaddy delta in 2008. It focuses on ARF as a forum whereby interactions take place. It examines whether the complementary of the analytical variables provided by the logic of consequences and appropriateness (March & Olsen 1998, 2004), social mechanisms (Checkel 1999, 2005) and observations derived from interviews (Southeast Asia and Brussels) can explain ASEAN and Myanmar’s reactions and, also, the EU’s behaviour in relation to the Myanmar-Nargis event. The EU’s role is explored through the cochair’s summary reports of the meetings that the EU co-chaired with ASEAN. The article shows that, at ARF, the EU promoted the multilateral aspects of its policy in the field of security, and attempted to mobilise the different strengths, values and capacities of its partners, i.e. ASEAN and Myanmar. It uncovers the EU’s efforts to encourage both ASEAN to take up responsibilities and Myanmar to accept multilateral security options. The article argues that, as the EU tried to inspire Myanmar to connect with cooperation, ‘Myanmar hit by Cyclone Nargis’ encouraged the EU Council to include the ‘responsibility to protect’ as a new goal of the European foreign and security policy of December 2008