The EU Indo-Pacific Strategy and its Meaning for ASEAN

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The Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the German-Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG), Faculty of Law, Thammasat University and the Asian Governance Foundation (AGF) jointly organised this seminar. 

For years, the world’s economic and political center of gravity has been shifting towards the Indo-Pacific. With China continuing to entrench its growing influence and the USA struggling to contain these efforts, Europe is facing a new challenge as its economic future and geopolitical relevance is inextricably linked to developments in this region.

Unveiling the strategy to tackle this challenge, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell presented in September the “EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific” under which the EU is to expand its engagement and presence in the region to “build partnerships that reinforce the rules-based international order, address global challenges, and lay the foundations for a rapid, just and sustainable economic recovery that creates long-term prosperity.”

In the EU Indo-Pacific Strategy, ASEAN enjoys a prominent position. This is reflected – among others – in the express commitment to enhancing ASEAN-centered mechanisms within the regional architecture, realizing the EU-ASEAN Strategic Partnership concluded last December, and the extending the geographic scope of its CRIMARIO II (Critical Maritime Routes in the Indian Ocean II) activities from the Indian Ocean into South and Southeast Asia aimed at contributing to safer sea lanes of communication with the EU.

Against this backdrop, this webinar – the inaugural event of the Europe in Review webinar series on Europe-Asia relations – will discuss the economic, geopolitical, and security impacts of the Indo-Pacific strategy on ASEAN and its member states, taking into account the dynamics of the Sino-US rivalry in the region.