Economic integration among Asian states requires cultural commonality Japan lacks

Evidence

East Asian societies undoubtedly share some things in common which differentiate them from the West. Malaysia’s prime minister, Mahathir Mohammad, argues that these commonalities provide a basis for association and has promoted formation of the East Asian Economic Caucus on these grounds. It would include the ASEAN countries, Myanmar, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and, most important, China and Japan. Mahathir argues that the EAEC is rooted in a common culture. It should be thought of “not just as a geographical group, because it is in East Asia, but also as a cultural group. Although East Asians may be Japanese or Koreans or Indonesians, culturally they have certain similarities. … Europeans flock together and Americans flock together. We Asians should flock together as well.” — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 361 (#complicates, via linked claim)

While ASEAN moved slowly, the yen bloc remained a dream, Japan wavered, and the EAEC did not get off the ground, economic interaction in East Asia nonetheless increased dramatically. This expansion was rooted in the cultural ties among East Asian Chinese communities. These ties gave rise to “continuing informal integration” of a Chinese-based international economy, comparable in many respects to the Hanseatic League, and “perhaps leading to a de facto Chinese common market” (see pp. 168-74). In East Asia, as elsewhere, cultural commonality has been the prerequisite to meaningful economic integration. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 363 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Overseas Chinese business networks drive East Asian economic integration; Multicivilizational groupings like ASEAN fail to achieve deep integration; Japan’s unique economy stems from its non-Western culture (+13 more)

Broader Connections

• East Asian leaders argue shared culture justifies regional economic union #complicates (0.85) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 361
• Chinese diaspora cultural ties, not states, drove East Asian economic integration. #complicates (0.82) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 363