In this article, the author analyzes the period of formation of the dialogue between ASEAN and the predecessor organization of the EU, the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1971-1984. This stage is fundamental in the development of cooperation between the two regional entities. Parallel to the integration processes in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC) and Europe, the dialogue between two influential regional entities, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the European Union (EU), has recently been gaining momentum. On the one hand, Europe with its centuries - old traditions, political and economic foundations and stereotypes materialized in the form of the EU, and on the other-the dynamically developing East in the face of ASEAN, which united Southeast Asia. Contacts between representatives of the two groups took place at the earliest stage of the existence of ASEAN, which was established in 1967, but since the Association was in its infancy, they did not lead to any concrete results [Zharov, 1982, pp. 127-133]. Initially, the EEC sought to establish contacts with the ASEAN countries on a bilateral basis. However, the EEC quickly abandoned it, which was caused by the common position of the ASEAN member States. Cooperation was mainly carried out within the framework of the ASEAN-EEC dialogue, and at various stages of negotiations, the forms of "dialogue" changed depending on the tasks set. At the earliest stages (1971-1977), contacts between the Southeast Asian countries and the EEC countries were not regular and were carried out sporadically, mainly to discuss individual issues. Analyzing the reasons for the emergence of cooperation between two major regional associations, it can be stated that the appeal of ASEAN to the EEC was the result of a pragmatic policy of balancing between the most influential players in the international arena: the United States and Japan. After the collapse of the colonial system, the influence of Western Europe in Southe ... Read more