Sri Lanka: Attempts to Join ASEAN- Fresh Insights:

27-Dec-2011

By  V. Suryanarayan

 S R Nathan has served the Republic of Singapore with great distinction in several capacities. When Singapore became independent suddenly on August 9, 1965 Nathan joined the fledgling Ministry of Foreign Affairs and rose very high in the organization. He became the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, served as Ambassador to the United States and High Commissioner in Malaysia, in addition to heading the Department of Intelligence. Nathan later became the President of Singapore and served the Republic for two terms.

After his retirement, SR Nathan has brought out his memoirs entitled An Unexpected Journey: Path to the Presidency (Singapore, 2011). The book came out few months ago. Published after he left the corridors of power, the book is not only fascinating reading; it also provides rare insights into Singapore’s turbulent history after the Second World War.

From the point of view of students of Sri Lanka’s foreign policy, the book is invaluable because it provides fresh insights into Ceylon’s attempts to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) which came into existence in August 1967. The founding fathers of ASEAN were Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. SR Nathan was an important member of the Singapore delegation, which was led by S. Rajaratnam, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and which finalized the aims and objectives of the regional organization. The Memoirs contains references to Ceylon’s efforts to join ASEAN in 1967 and spells out the reasons why Colombo’s attempts did not succeed.     Full Story>>>