The ASEAN Charter and the ASEAN Economic Community

The ASEAN Charter was signed at the 13th ASEAN Summit in November 2007. After each country ratified the Charter, it went into effect on December 15, 2008. This was the first time that a Charter was signed and went to effect for ASEAN. The ASEAN Charter will play a very significant role in the development of ASEAN intra-regional economic cooperation and economic integration including the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). This paper will examine the significance and contents of the ASEAN Charter from the perspective of AEC and intra-regional economic cooperation/economic integration.