Germany published its policy guidelines for the Indo-Pacific under the title “Germany - Europe - Asia: Shaping the 21st Century Together” in 2020. At the time of writing, the world was still grappling with the COVID 19 pandemic, and the guidelines emphasized the importance of free sea trade routes, the respect for a rules-based international order, and the need for multilateralism and increased dialogue. While many of the guidelines' tenets are sufficiently universal to apply still – on the significance of free sea routes, for example – the region's security dynamics have drastically changed in the past four years, necessitating an update to the guidelines. Given the escalating tensions initiated by China in the region, particularly in the West Philippine Sea, updating these guidelines to keep up to date with increasingly aggressive activities is crucial to counteract geopolitical threats in the region, the consequences of which will extend to Germany, Europe, and the global economy.
The Security Blueprint is a series of policy briefs and short articles addressing critical security issues involving the Philippines and the region, authored by KAS security experts and fellows of the Adenauer Security Experts Network Philippines (SeEN PH) Program.
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