ASEAN member states must step out of their comfort zones and steer regional cooperation in a clear direction, experts told a seminar on Thursday.

Singapore Ambassador-at-large Ong Keng Yong, who led ASEAN as secretary-general between 2003 and 2007, argued that the bloc needed to “go beyond the general situation of peace” and actually use the mechanisms that it has in dealing with different issues.

As an example, Ong said that the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) has a clause on dispute settlement that has never been invoked “because ASEAN member states are afraid of [establishing] a precedent.”

He said the clause of the TAC High Council would be useful in resolving the Rakhine crisis in Myanmar, which has massive regional repercussions despite arguably being a domestic problem.