Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia (or southeastern Asia) is a subregion of 500 million people located south of China, east of India, and north of Australia. It is usually divided into two main geographic regions: (1) mainland Southeast Asia, including Cambodia, Laos, Burma (the Republic of the Union of Myanmar), Thailand, Vietnam, and Peninsular Malaysia, and (2) maritime Southeast Asia, including Brunei, East Malaysia, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Indonesia, the Philippines, and Singapore.

In 1967, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand created the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), with the aims [Page 384]of implementing economic growth, social progress, and cultural development and protecting the peace and stability of the region. Today, ASEAN also includes Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The ASEAN states grew rapidly, from both a ...