This volume comprises the revised and edited papers first presented in late February 1996 at a conference in Turin, Italy. The conference was a collaborative effort by the Giovanni Agnelli Foundation of Italy and the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in Singapore. The idea of the conference came from the Giovanni Agnelli Foundation which saw the need to promote a better understanding of Southeast Asia among the academic, business, and media elite of Italy on the eve of the first meeting of government leaders of Asia and Europe (ASEM) in Bangkok in March 1996. The Giovanni Agnelli Foundation also bore the costs of the conference and of the production of ASEAN in the New Asia. ISEAS was responsible for getting scholars from Southeast Asia and for editing and publishing this volume.

Since economic matters feature prominently in Southeast Asia-Europe relations, the focus of the conference was more economic. However, the relationship between the two regions goes beyond economics, and, further, any attempt to understand Southeast Asia must take into account the changes in the security environment. So issues of politics and security were not ignored. This is evident from the Table of Contents to this volume.

We take this opportunity to thank the authors of the articles in this volume for their contributions.