ABSTRACT
While in 1947, neither India nor Australia managed to overtake Britain's lead in organising regional cooperation in South-East Asia, a serious challenge to the Special Commission emerged through the body of the recently created United Nations Orga nisation. After little advance warning, the UN's Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) decided on 19 March 1947 to establish the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE), covering South, East and South-East Asia. ECAFE constituted the most serious threat so far to Britain's regional plans, as it was intent on taking over the coordinating functions previously performed by the Special Commission in Singapore.
