The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) is an international institution, specifically a government-to-government dialogue platform for political and security issues in the Indo-Pacific region. It was established in 1994 in Bangkok, Thailand, as an outgrowth of the annual Ministerial-level dialogue between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its Dialogue Partners. The ARF was created to solve the problem of engaging major external powers in a cooperative security framework after the Cold War, rather than a formal alliance system, and to foster constructive dialogue on security issues.
The ARF operates on the principle of consensus and the "ASEAN Way," which emphasizes non-interference, informality, and incremental progress. Its mechanism is guided by an evolutionary, three-stage process outlined in its 1995 Concept Paper: first, Confidence-Building Measures (CBMs); second, Preventive Diplomacy (PD); and third, the elaboration of approaches to conflicts. The forum has five work streams, including Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime, Maritime Security, and Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, which host Inter-Sessional Meetings (ISMs). The overarching guiding document for these work streams was the ARF Hanoi Plan of Action II (2020-25), which was extended by one year.
The ARF connects to the broader ASEAN structure, with the annual Foreign Minister-level meeting held in conjunction with the ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference. India became a participant in the ARF in 1996 and actively participates in its meetings, consistent with its "Act East" policy. The ARF comprises 27 participants, including the ten ASEAN member states, ten of ASEAN's dialogue partners (like India, the United States, and China), and other regional actors. A significant recent change occurred in July 2026, when the Manila Plan of Action for 2026–2036 was formally adopted to guide the forum's work for the next decade, replacing the Hanoi Plan of Action. The forum also noted ASEAN's consensus to admit the United Kingdom as the 28th member.