EU – Asia: LOVE in troubled times

Europe and Asia have never been so close. Our economies are interconnected; our cultures are interconnected; and our security is connected: we face the same challenges, we confront similar threats, and we share an interest in preserving peace in our regions and international cooperation on a global scale.

Europe and Asia
Global Partners for Global Challenges

EU cooperation with Asia, a region of diverse incomes, is at country and regional levels. The bulk of EU funding is allocated to assist sustainable development of the poorest countries including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia and Myanmar/Burma.

The EU is supporting trade liberalisation and integration spearheaded by regional organisations. In areas such as the environment, energy, climate change and higher education, cooperation with the EU is spreading know-how and informing policies region-wide. Assistance to those uprooted and displaced by natural disasters or conflict are other areas of EU support.

EU-Asia Connectivity
Brussels 27 SEP 2019
Building Bridges for a Sustainable Future

This event builds on the recent European Commission Communication Connecting Europe and Asia: Building Blocks for an EU Strategy. It is a first concrete manifestation of facilitating much deeper ties between Europe and Asia in promoting shared values and joint interests: from upholding the rules-based, multilateral order and developing high standards for digital and physical infrastructure, to embracing sustainability and clean technologies.

In a mix of keynote addresses by high-ranking political leaders and interactive panels, speakers will explore connectivity as a global megatrend, and extrapolate what it means for the EU-Asia relationship as well as the wider world. In particular, connectivity will be examined through various angles, from geopolitics and economics to standards and finance.

The Forum takes place on Friday 27 September 2019, from 09h00 to 17h30 in the Charlemagne building, in Brussels.

Speakers:

Jean-Claude Juncker
President of the European Commission

Shinzō Abe
Prime Minister, Japan

Antti Rinne
Prime Minister, Finland

Andrej Plenković
Prime Minister, Croatia

Hermann Van Rompuy
Former Prime Minister of Belgium,
former President of the European Council

Radmila Šekerinska
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, North Macedonia

Peter Altmaier
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Germany

Mohammad Humayon Qayoumi
Minister of Finance, Afghanistan

Văn Bình Nguyễn
Chairman of the Central Economic Commission, Member of the Politburo and Secretariat of the Central Committee, Vietnam

Werner Hoyer
President, European Investment Bank

Suma Chakrabarti
President, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Takehiko Nakao
President, Asian Development Bank

Kang-hyeon Yun
Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs, Foreign Ministry, Republic of Korea

Murat Zhurebekov
Vice-Minister of Energy, Kazakhstan

Robert Strayer
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Cyber and International Communications and Information Policy, USA

Reinhard Bütikofer
Member of the European Parliament

Romana Vlahutin
Ambassador-at-Large for Connectivity, European External Action Service

Ann Mettler
Head, European Political Strategy Centre

Siswo Pramono
Head of Policy Analysis and Development Agency,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Indonesia

Xuejun Guo
Deputy Director General of the Department of International Economic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China

Riccardo Lambiris
CEO, Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund

Masaki Sakuyama
Chairman, Mitsubishi Electric and co-Chair, EU-Japan BRT

Cedrik Neike
CEO Smart Infrastructure, Siemens AG

Parag Khanna
Founder & Managing Partner, FutureMap

Soumitra Dutta
Professor and Founding Dean, SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University and Special Advisor for AI,
Confederation of Indian Industry

Linda Yueh
Economist, Broadcaster and Writer

Maaike Okano-Heijmans
Senior Research Fellow, Clingendael Institute

Bruno Maçães
Author of “The Dawn of Eurasia” and “Belt and Road”,
Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China (RDCY) and Hudson Institute

Tesa Arcilla
Political Journalist and Host of Raw Politics on Euronews NBC

Valentina Pop
Reporter, Wall Street Journal

Agatha Kratz
Associate Director, Rhodium Group

Programme and other information

Debating the EU-Asia relations!
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