Since its inception, the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has sought to create regional stability and has evolved into a security as well as an economic community. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) on the other hand, despite its mainly economic vocation, has played an increasingly political role between its members. While ASEAN has successfully pursued its agenda by gradually becoming a Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality (ZOPFAN), SAARC, hampered by bilateral divergences has so far only provided a platform for negotiating disputes and working out agreements but has failed to build a regional consensus.
