The EU is redefining their position in the international world order through their Indo-Pacific Plan. In this respect, on 22 February 2022, European and Indo-Pacific representatives for foreign affairs and security policy are set to meet in Paris for the Indo-Pacific Forum.
With the official election of Olaf Scholz as the new German Chancellor by the newly constituted parliament (the Bundestag) on 8 December 2021, the 16-year-long era of Angela Merkel as head of the German government came to an end. Along with Merkel’s farewell ended the governing role of her conservative party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), after achieving a record low of voter shares in the September 2021 parliamentary elections.
The 13th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) took place on 25-26 November 2021 via videoconference under the theme “strengthening multilateralism for shared growth”. ASEM has major untapped potential but remains a valuable platform for dialogue and the exchange of information for its members.
On 1 December 2021, the EU launched its brand new infrastructural development scheme – “The Global Gateway”. By pledging to mobilise up to 300 billion EUR in investments by 2027, the EU is adding significant firepower to its toolkit of economic statecraft.
In view of the growing tensions and most recent developments in Lithuania’s relations with China, this op-ed assesses the causes of their current dispute, related EU perspectives and the potential for a 27+1 approach towards China.
In September 2021, EU Commissioner for the internal market, Thierry Breton, visited Japan and South Korea to corral international support for the ‘EU Chips Act’, a strategy aimed at enhancing European production capacity and research in the field.
Who is Fumio Kishida, the new leader of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party succeeding Yoshihide Suga after his stepping down as Prime Minister? Standing for the 31 October 2021 general elections we look ahead and assess who he is and what he represents within the party and for the country.
Tehri Hakala, the newly appointed EU Special Representative for Central Asia visited the region in August 2021. What can we expect from her term as EUSR and what are the EU’s priorities in its relations with the region?
Thanks to an uninterrupted presence of Chinese investors in Afghanistan, favored by China’s more welcomed non-interference policy, there seems to be room for a stronger role of Beijing in Afghanistan’s state re-building process. While the Taliban is seeking help from the international community as a whole, and in spite of the fact that the EU is going to disburse a significant amount of money in the form of aid, it is uncertain whether the conditional approach endorsed by the EU will grant it a possible central role in the future of Afghanistan’s development.