ASEAN, as being on the very core of this matter, deserves close attention through the case of Timor-Leste for understanding international strategic inclusion-exclusion dynamics. The manuscript we provide tackles this case through a small country ‘in-between’ the core global actors of economic and political concern: Timor-Leste as a ground for grasping large-scale complexities in decision-making processes, as much as the micro-understanding and dynamics of a small country ‘within the game’ – if not even on the forefront.
Paulo Castro Seixas, Associate Professor at the Institute of Social and Political Sciences, Universidade de Lisboa. PhD in Anthropology and Habilitation in Sociology. Researcher in CAPP -Centre of Administration and Public Policies. Former Coordinator of the Portuguese Team of the EU H2020 project CRISEA with a focus on Timor-Leste/ASEAN centrality.
Nuno Canas Mendes, Associate Professor at the Institute of Social and Political Sciences, Universidade de Lisboa. PhD in International Relations (Technical University of Lisbon). President of Instituto do Oriente (Orient Institute). Former research fellow of the EU H2020 project CRISEA with a focus on Timor-Leste/ASEAN centrality.
Nadine Lobner, FCT doctoral fellow (BD/7467/2020) of Anthropology at Universidade de Lisboa, ISCSP/CAPP. BA and MA in anthropology (University of Vienna; University of Lisbon). Former research fellow of the EU H2020 project CRISEA with a focus on Timor-Leste/ASEAN centrality.
Foreword Acknowledgements Notes on Contributors List of Figures and Tables
Introduction Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
Part 1: Political Process, Internal-External Constellations and Meta-Analysis
1 ASEAN in the Making: Centralities and Peripheries Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
2 Timor-Leste’s Membership of ASEAN: The Political Process and Its Discontents Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
3 ASEAN and Timor-Leste: An Analysis of Decision-Making Dynamics Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
Part 2: Neighbors and Kin, Big Men and Brothers, and the Ecumene at Large
4 Is There an Endless Search for New (Overseas) Younger Brother(s)? Timor-Leste and Its Ecumenic Ambitions Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
5 ASEAN and Timor-Leste: A Discourse on Centrality, Sociopolitical Negotiations and Relationships Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
6 Neighbors and Kin: ASEAN as an Ecumene? Reality Constructions from a Timorese Perspective Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes and Nadine Lobner
7 Disputing Centralities amidst Covid-19: The Triangular Relationship of ASEAN, China and Timor-Leste Paulo Castro Seixas, Nuno Canas Mendes, Nadine Lobner and Kaian Lam
Postscript: Timor-Leste ASEAN Membership: Rethinking the Debate Ariel Mota Alves
Index
This book applies to social and political scientists concerned with the regional and international (des)integration dynamics of the current global player-dynamics through the case study of a ‘gate-keeper’ country, Timor-Leste.