Interstate and Intrastate Dynamics in Southeast Asia's War on Terror

Recent studies highlight the relative dearth of counterterrorism cooperation between member nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Acknowledging that more can and should be done by Southeast Asian governments in interdicting terrorism, the authors nevertheless argue that hitherto collaboration between and among security and intelligence services of ASEAN and partner countries in the war on terror has been fairly effective, as evidenced by the capture of key Jemaah Islamiyah militants. On the other hand, weak state capacity and legitimacy as well as bureaucratic competition and rivalry continue to debilitate rather than facilitate national and regional counterterrorism efforts. Moreover, the apparent circumspection of regional responses to terrorism is partly a reaction to the highly militarized counterterrorism strategy embraced by the United States. Finally, the authors contend that radical Islamist terrorism can only be successfully countered by the adoption of a comprehensive approach that addresses a host of real or perceived social, economic, political and ultimately, ideological challenges.