Remember the ASEAN Regional Forum? That was the experiment in multilateralism that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations had hoped would become a real forum for regional security discussions. ASEAN would use that foundation to become an institution of truly global significance, offering a model for regional integration, organization and security. ARF held its annual meeting last week, and most of the world missed it. So much for ASEAN's grandiose ambitions.

What a difference a year makes. Last summer, ARF broke ground with the introduction of a new mechanism, "the troika" of past, present and future chairmen who would tackle regional problems, the induction of North Korea as a member, and progress on the "ASEAN plus Three" format that brought the organization together with Japan, China and South Korea. There were high hopes that ASEAN had surmounted the 1997 financial crisis and would again aspire to the heights that its founders had set.

The organization has since been beset by problems -- some pedestrian, some profound. For example, this year's meeting was chaired by Vietnam, a government with little experience in running such events. Being chair is not just a ceremonial matter: It involves organizing and running the meeting, setting the agenda, and being responsible for seeing that something significant is produced at the end. It takes more than good intentions to get results. There were questions whether Vietnam was up to the assignment.

More troubling for ASEAN was the continuing political turmoil in Indonesia. That country has historically been the anchor of the organization; former President Suharto's age, longevity and the size of his country made him the most influential leader in Southeast Asia. It is not a mere coincidence that ASEAN has seemed rudderless since Mr. Suharto was forced to step down. At this year's meeting, the Indonesian foreign minister -- the representative of the largest country in ASEAN -- could not attend because of the political turmoil at home.

The troubles in Jakarta help mask a basic problem. ASEAN is no longer the organization it was a decade ago when anything seemed possible. Not only has Southeast Asia's confidence been shattered, but ASEAN has grown. Its 10 members represent a wider range of economies and societies. Finding common ground is harder than before, and the organization's famous doctrine of nonintervention in the domestic affairs of members continues to be a powerful restraint on action.

Despite the growing frustration over the inaction, and the fear that its goals are slipping away, ASEAN sticks to that guiding principle. This year, the group reiterated its commitments to decision-making based on consensus and noninterference. The result was a decided lack of progress in Hanoi.

According to Mr. Nguyen Dy Nien, the foreign minister of Vietnam and the chairman of the meeting, the group reached a "high consensus" on the need to agree to a code of conduct in the South China Sea, a region that has been marked by conflict between China and five other claimants from ASEAN. But those discussions have been under way for years now, and the lack of real progress is only confirmation to some that ASEAN is not up to the task.

In another "development" that feeds the impatience of Western diplomats, the participants agreed on the "concept" of preventive diplomacy. According to the statement released at the end of the meeting, "The ministers agreed that while moving toward PD (preventive diplomacy), the ARF should continue to strengthen its confidence-building process so as to substantially enhance mutual trust, confidence and understanding as well as cooperation among the ARF participants." Some see in that statement the beginning of phase two in the organization's evolution: a move from confidence building toward crisis prevention. (Phase three would move to conflict resolution.) But others see only more talking, and nothing that would move the institution closer to taking action in a crisis.

Does ARF's failure to match the high expectations vested in it matter? Yes, but maybe not now. Asia is home to three of the world's most tense spots -- the Korean Peninsula, the Taiwan Strait and South Asia -- but none are going to boil over soon. Asian nations are still trying to recover their footing from the 1997 financial crisis; Indonesia's continuing travails are the most enduring legacy of that period. Eventually, however, the region will regain its confidence and demand its place on the globe stage. Then it will need to speak with a single voice and be capable of acting as one. That sort of behavior is hard to learn. ARF was supposed to get them in the habit. That is the real loss in last week's meeting.