Strategic Manoeuvres: Exercise Balikatan and the Indo-Pacific Strategies of France and Germany

The Indo-Pacific region is a key region in terms of maritime geopolitics, security, trade and environmental issues. With China's rise, increasing tensions over territorial claims and the region's strategic importance, several European countries, including Germany and France, have implemented comprehensive policies.

Multilateral military exercises such as Exercise Balikatan, which demonstrate the United States’ commitment to work with its Indo-Pacific partners, are one of the emerging strategies utilised in maintaining regional security. This policy brief discusses strategic manoeuvres in the Indo-Pacific, focusing on Exercise Balikatan and a comparative analysis of French and German regional approaches. Through these lenses, it investigates the broader consequences of military collaboration in regard to the role of the European Union in the region and the shifting geopolitical situation in the Indo-Pacific.

Authors: Rania Mrini, Junior Researcher and Amy Dyer, University of East Anglia

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