Does Confucianism promote cooperation and integration in East Asia?

Katarzyna Anna Nawrot

doi:10.1007/s40636-020-00173-2

Abstract

This paper examines the commonality of culture in East Asia and its relationship with economic cooperation and the integration of the region, and shows how Confucian ethics and philosophy have played a significant role in the economic growth and development of the various countries there. It finds, however, that there is still insufficient recognition of Confucian and Asian values as the potential mainstay of a regional identity on which economic integration can be built and enhanced. The earliest catalysts of cooperation and integration in East Asia were political and security threats. Later, functional integration was accomplished through globalization and market forces. Yet the institutionalization of the processes is inevitable and necessary if cooperation and integration are to be deepened and strengthened. This can be achieved by building a regional identity. Thus, cultural community based on Confucianism can serve as a pillar of regional common identity and values as a necessary condition to consolidate and integrate East Asian countries into a single economic community.

Highlights

The late twentieth century and early twenty-first century have seen impressive economic growth and development in the countries of East Asia, which has enabled the individual countries and the region itself to move into the spotlight of the global1 3 Vol.:(0123456789)K
This paper has striven to examine cultural commonality in East Asia based on Confucianism and its relation to economic cooperation and integration
This study has demonstrated that cultural similarity based on Confucianism has played a greater role in functional rather than institutional cooperation and integration, which is exemplified by production networks, intra-regional trade, intra-industry trade and sub-regional cooperation

Summary

Introduction

The late twentieth century and early twenty-first century have seen impressive economic growth and development in the countries of East Asia, which has enabled the individual countries and the region itself to move into the spotlight of the global. Extensive cooperation and integration has gradually spread beyond Southeast Asia and ASEAN to other countries from East Asia, and has even extended beyond the region to the intercontinental level (ADB 2010; Frost 2008; Fujita et al 2011) This growing institutional interdependence has taken the form of multilateral and bilateral structures of cooperation, which gave rise both to East Asian community building and to what is known as the Asian-noodle-bowl effect or the Asian-spaghettibowl effect—a notion that has been widely discussed by scholars such as Baldwin, Kim, Nawrot, Park, Pempel and Thornton (Baldwin and Thornton 2008; Nawrot 2007; Park et al 2011). The negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership that began in 2010 came to a halt because the United States and Vietnam could not reach agreement on textiles and because

X: In effect : Signed but not yet in effect : Framework agreement signed

Findings

Conclusions and recommendations