Episode 37 | How the EU Fits into Asia’s Security Puzzle

Episode 37

How the EU Fits into Asia’s Security Puzzle

Released on June 28, 2021


This week we turn our attention to the Indo-Pacific - and the new geopolitical groupings emerging there, from multilateral trade deals to nascent security arrangements.

The most well-known of the latter is probably the Quad, a grouping of the major democracies with skin in the game in the region - namely India, Japan, Australia, and the US.

But what of Europe, the world’s largest trading bloc?

Back in April, the EU published a strategy document aimed at boosting its presence in the region. But what does that mean in practice - what does the bloc hope to achieve, what limitations is it up against - and what do the major players situated in the region make of this renewed European focus?

This is Asia Matters’ latest collaboration with the Centre for Security, Strategy and Diplomacy at the Brussels School of Governance - and its Senior Japan Fellow Eva Pejsova is one of our guests as we discuss where Europe fits into the shifting geopolitical picture in the region.

Joining Andrew and Eva are Abhijit Singh, Senior Fellow and head of the Maritime Policy Initiative at the Observer Research Foundation; and Kei Koga, Assistant Professor at the School of Social Sciences at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Eva Pejsova (@EPejsova)

Eva Pejsova is a Senior Japan Fellow at the Brussels School of Governance and an Associate Fellow at the French “Fondation pour la Recherche Strategique” (FRS). Previously, Dr. Pejsova was in charge of the Asia portfolio at the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS), the EU’s agency for foreign and security policy research and analysis. She holds a PhD in Strategic Studies from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) in Singapore and has previously worked with the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the French Prime Minister’s Office, the OECD and the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF).

Abhijit Singh (@abhijit227)

Abhijit Singh, Senior Fellow, heads the Maritime Policy Initiative at ORF. A maritime professional with specialist and command experience in front-line Indian naval ships, he has been involved the writing of India's maritime strategy (2007). He is a keen commentator on maritime matters and has written extensively on security and governance issues in the Indian Ocean and Pacific littorals. He is Editor of two books on maritime security — Indian Ocean Challenges: A Quest for Cooperative Solutions (2013) and Geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific (2014).

Kei Koga (@K_2010)

Kei Koga is Assistant Professor at the Public Policy and Global Affairs Programme, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Previously, he was visiting fellow at Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in 2017; a Japan-U.S. Partnership Fellow at the Research Institute for Peace and Security (RIPS), Tokyo, in 2012-2014; and a Postdoctoral Fellow in the International Studies Program, The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School, in 2012-2013. He received his Ph.D. in International Relations at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University.