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June 2010 April 2010 Newsletter Subscription Subscribe to our newsletter Unsubscribe Quick Links
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Upcoming Events
Chinese and Japanese Language Courses
Mid-September to Mid-December 2010 From September 2010 onwards, the European Institute for Asian Studies will organize weekly Japanese and Chinese Language Courses. In collaboration with Mr. Hiroshi Oscar Kawada and Xiaowei Liu, EIAS will offer a series of Japanese and Chinese Language Courses at different levels. Mr. Hiroshi Kawada has been living in Belgium for the past ten years working as a Japanese teacher, translator/interpreter and even for two years as a political analyst at the Japanese Embassy in Brussels, in charge of political affairs in Belgium and Flanders. Ms. Xiaowei Liu is originally from Beijing and has been living for 8 years in Belgium. She studied Applied Economics and graduated with an International Master’s of Management at UA and UAMS. She further gained work experience on an international level as an editor/journalist, teacher and interpreter in projects for the UA faculty of sociology. Currently she works as financial officer in an international development aid company in Brussels. The courses will take place for approximately 90 minutes, once a week, during 3 months, from mid-September to mid-December 2010, according to the level of the participants (beginner or advanced/business). The courses will take place at the European Institute for Asian Studies and English will be used as the language of instruction. The classes will start from the week of 13 September onwards. Practical Information September – December 2010 Once a week (starting from the week of 13 September onwards) Approximately 90 minutes Price The cost of the course is 175€, which includes all course materials and administration fees For companies and private sessions with Mr. Kawada or Ms. Xiaowei Liu, prices and modalities can be agreed upon. Should you wish to begin the course on a private basis at an earlier stage during the summer or after September, please contact us for further information. For more information and registration, please contact us at eias@eias.org or +32 (0)2 2308122. The EIAS Team 2010 Asia Pacific Security Forum 10-11 September 2010 EIAS Brussels The Asia-Pacific Security Forum is an international conference being co-hosted by the European Institute for Asian Studies along with the Institute for National Policy Research (Taiwan), The Pacific Forum CSIS (US), Institute for Strategic and Development Studies (Philippines), and the Asia Centre (France). This two-day conference will bring distinguished scholars and speakers from around the globe to discuss matters relating to Asia-Pacific security. This year's theme is "The Changing Environment for Peace and Prosperity in the Asia-Pacific", reflecting the constantly changing states of security in the Asia-Pacific. The conference will feature various panels on topics such as "Changes in Triangular Relations Between the United States, Japan, and China", "Peace Building in Cross-Strait Relations", " The European Perspective on Peace Building in Europe and the Asia-Pacific", and "Changes in the Peace Environment in the Asia-Pacific Region". The last day of the conference will feature a roundtable forum that will include leading international experts discussing various issues relating to Asia-Pacific security. To register, please confirm your participation by sending an e-mail to eias@eias.org by Monday, 6 September 2010, indicating your Name, Position, Organisation and Contact Details. Attachment: Tentative Programme of the 2010 Asia Pacific Security Forum EIAS Briefing Seminar: The Future Growth of ASEAN Economies and Sustainable Development 14 September 2010, 14:30-17:30 EIAS Brussels The meeting is taking place in view of the recent OECD Report on the growth perspectives of the ASEAN economies and sustainable development. With the objective to enhance the discussion on the monitoring of development and effects of trade on the ASEAN economies, investment and development cooperation between ASEAN and the EU, the meeting will focus on the past achievements and prospects for the future in relation to policies that promote sustainable development, especially from the viewpoint of civil society. Attachment: Invitation EIAS Briefing Seminar on the Future Growth of ASEAN economies and Sustainable Development Recent Events and Reports
EIAS Briefing Seminar
Voices from Civil Society Actors in Burma: Challenges and Opportunities facing the different sectors in 2010 12 July 2010, 14:30-16:30 EIAS, Brussels Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell, Vice-Chairman, European Institute for Asian Studies The Role of Local Media: Nwe, Representative from the Myanmar Media Community The Role of Education in the Informal Education Sector in Burma: Flora, Representative a Myanmar NGO working on Education On Monday 12 July the European Institute for Asian Studies hosted a briefing seminar on the situation of civil society in Burma/Myanmar, in particular on the print media regulations and the progress of education. The meeting began with a brief overview of Myanmar, which is geographically located in Southeast Asia and has a population of approximately 59 million people. However, as it is listed as a Least Developed Country with an annual GDP per capita (PPP) of about US$1000, many in Myanmar live in deep poverty. It is also a country that suffers from one of the highest mortality rates in the world. Attachment: Report EIAS Briefing Seminar Voices from Civil Society In Burma EU-Korea Briefing Seminar 30 June 2010, 14:30-17:00 EIAS, Brussels Chair: Mr. David Fouquet, Director of the Asia-Europe Project Speakers: Two-Track Security Framework for the Korean Peninsula: the EU's Security Cooperation Prof. Emeritus Mane Heo, Busan National University and President of the Korea-European Union Forum The Politics and Economics of the ASEAN+3 FTA: Comparison with the Japan-China-Korea FTA Prof. Lee Kap-Soo, Busan National University The EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement Mr. Glyn Ford, Former Member of the European Parliament and EIAS Board Member On 30 June 2010, the European Institute for Asian Studies hosted a briefing seminar on the EU-Republic of Korea (ROK) relationship in terms of security and trade. The Republic of Korea has been an important player throughout its history, especially since the second World War. Contemporarily, it is gaining more attention as its relationship with North Korea is causing geopolitical and security tensions in the region, especially with the current possibility of a EU-ROK free trade agreement. Attachment: Report EU-Korea Briefing Seminar Paper Prof. Mane Heo Paper Prof. Lee Kab-Soo Lunch Briefing: The 16th SAARC Summit 21 June 2010, 12:30-14:30 EIAS, Brussels Speakers: Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell, Vice-Chairman, European Institute for Asian Studies H.E. Mr. Ravinath Aryasinha, Ambassador of Sri Lanka H.E. Mr. Sonam Tobden Rabgye, Ambassador of Bhutan To mark its Silver Jubilee Year, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held its16th Summit meeting in Thimphu, the Bhutanese capital, on 28th and 29th April 2010. The theme of the Summit was 'Towards a Green and Happy South Asia", with the emphasis on Climate Change, where a special Thimphu Statement on Climate Change was adopted. It was the first summit held in Bhutan. Since SAARC was set up in 1985, between Bangaldesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, substantial progress has been made. A SAARC Preferential Trade Agreement (SAPTA) was concluded in 1993, and this led on to the South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), concluded in 2004. SAARC also has its own Development Fund for financing regional and sub-regional projects. The SAARC Secretariat was established in Kathmandu and coordinates the work of the Association. Afghanistan was admitted as the eighth member of SAARC in 2007 and the organisation also has a number of observers, including the European Union. A notable aspect of the recent summit is an attempt to strengthen parliamentary cooperation amongst the member countries, which, hitherto, has been rather limited. Bangladesh has suggested the idea of a SAARC Charter of Democracy and the SAARC leaders recommended the convening of a "Conclave of SAARC Parliamentarians". Attachment: Report Lunch Briefing 16th SAARC Summit Roundtable Discussion: Sri Lanka in the Post-Conflict Situation 10 June 2010, 14:30-18:00 EIAS, Brussels Session 1: Political Developments in Sri Lanka since the end of the Civil Conflict Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell, Vice-Chairman, European Institute for Asian Studies Dr. Habil. Christian Wagner, Research Group Leader, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Berlin Mike Griffiths, Former National Political Officer, Unite Trade Union and Chair of the British Labour Party Mr. Douglas Wickramaratne, President, Sinhala Association in the United Kingdom Mr. Francisco Fontan, DG External Relations, European Commission Mr. Nirj Deva, Member of the European Parliament Session 2: Prospects for EU Relations with Sri Lanka Chair: Mr. Eddy Laurijssen, EIAS Board Member and Former Director, ILO Brussels Office Mr. James Howard, Director, Economic and Social Policy, International Trade Union Confederation Mr. Wim Ceriez, Chairman,Belgolux Sri Lanka Business Committee H.E. Mr. Ravinath Aryasinha, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union Sri Lanka’s long-running civil conflict, which had pitted the Government’s armed forces against the rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE or Tamil Tigers), was brought to a brutal end in the Spring of 2009, with the final defeat of the Tamil Tigers. The conflict had lasted for nearly thirty years, had cost many thousands of lives of both combatants and non-combatants and had set back the social and economic development of the country very substantially. On 10th June, the European Institute for Asian Studies held an afternoon Round Table Discussion to assess developments one year after the conflict and to consider the European Union’s current position on Sri Lanka, in particular regarding the question of the suspension of that country’s privileges under the EU’s GSP Plus scheme. The objective of this forum was to gather together the relevant stakeholders, in order to discuss Sri Lanka’s future and the challenges the country was facing since end of the civil conflict. The Round Table was divided into two sessions, with the first part analysing the current political situation in Sri Lanka, whereas the second session focused on the prospects for the EU’s relations with Sri Lanka in terms of trade. The forum included an open discussion where participants were given the opportunity to share their opinions and recommendations for a better future for Sri Lanka. Attachment: Report EIAS Roundtable Discussion on Sri Lanka in the Post Conflict Situation Lunch Briefing: Relocation of Productive Capacity and the Built-in Conflict between Producers and Importers in the Home Countries 8 June 2010, 12:30-14:30 EIAS, Brussels Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell, Vice-Chairman, European Institute for Asian Studies Keynote Speaker: Prof. em. Sylvain Plasschaert, University of Antwerp and of Leuven Discussants: Mr. Stefaan Depypere, Director Trade Defence, DG Trade, European Commission Mr. Carsten Dannöhl, Senior Adviser, Business Europe Mr. Robert Mc Lean, Partner, Crowell and Moring, Law Firm Mr. Rudi Delarue, Director, Brussels Office of the International Labour Organisation On 8 June, 2010, the European Institute for Asian Studies (EIAS) hosted a luncheon briefing entitled the "Relocation of Productive Capacity and the Built-in Conflict between Producers and Importers in the Home Countries." The ideas here revolved around the built-in conflicts that countries experience between producers and importers. Attachment: Report Lunch Briefing Relocation of Productive Capacity Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation 11th World Korean Forum The New Era for Korea and the EU 10-11 May 2010, Brussels The European Institute for Asian Studies (EIAS), is organising, in cooperation with the Korean Global Foundation (KGF), the 11th World Korean Forum. This 11th World Korean Forum will take place in Brussels on 10-11 May 2010. With representatives from all over the world, this Forum has a major importance on a global scale. Several representatives from different EU Institutions (the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union), have been invited to speak at this conference. Previous editions of the World Korean Forum were successfully held in Seoul in 2009(10th), Tokyo in 2008(9th), Beijing in 2007(8th), Moscow & St. Petersburg in 2006(7th), United Nations in 2005(6th), Washington DC in 2004(5th), Berlin in 2003(4th), Los Angeles in 2002(3rd), Hiroshima in 2001(2nd), and New York in 2000(1st). More information will be circulated in due course. Attachment: Provisional Programme 11th World Korean Forum Lunch Briefing Are we Making a Dragon out of a Dragonfly? China's Role in Global Production Networks Thursday 4 March 2010, 12:30 to 14:30 EIAS, Brussels Speaker: Prof. Dr. Ari Van Ascche Chair: Mr. Glyn Ford Prof. Dr. Ari Van Assche teaches at the Department of International Business of HEC Montreal, Canada. He obtained an M.A. in Sinology at the Catholic University of Leuven, and a Ph.D. in Economics at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Recently, his research has focused on the growing role of global production networks in international trade, and the special role of China therein. This rapidly spreading phenomenon is bound to exert significant implications for the assessment of China's international competitiveness and integration into the world economy. Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation - China's Role in Global Production Networks Attachment: PDF - China's Role in Global Production Networks EIAS Briefing Paper - February 2010 Canaries in the Mines: Significance of Sino-Indian Interaction in Myanmar by MH Ting Abstract Southeast Asia [SEA] does not appear to play a major role in current geopolitical developments. Furthermore, the concurrent rises of both China and India have also contributed to increasing SEA?s relative geopolitical obscurity. However, this paper argues that SEA, and especially Burma, is an important region as it provides a preview of the nature and effects of Chinese and Indian rise. This paper uses prospect theory, which presents a different perspective from expected utility theory, to argue why their interaction with and in Burma is significant. It proposes that using prospect theory to examine their interests in Burma would provide early insights to how these aspiring powers would behave when their interests converge, and eventually collide in theatres of primary importance. Attachment: EIAS Briefing Paper - February 2010 Chinese New Year Reception and Vernissage Tuesday, 2 February 2010 at 18.30 Venue: Abbey of Neumünster, Luxembourg, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg
Reception on the occasion of the Chinese New Year 2010, Year of the Tiger.
Exhibition Conference on "Regionalism and Reform of the Global Monetary and Financial System - What Role for Europe and Asia" Thursday 4 February 2010 Albert Borschette Conference Centre, Brussels
Organised by the Asian Develoment Bank Institute, the European
Commission and the European Institute for Asian Studies Lunch Briefing on "India between the EU, the SCO and BRIC"
Speaker: Prof. Come Carpentier de Gourdon Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies As one of the great emerging powers, India is being engaged by most other influential nations and, aside from its controversial strategic partnership with the USA, has pursued a particularly active interaction with the EU, ASEAN and the SCO, the new Eurasian cooperative organization whose interests are intertwined with India's own in a rather ambiguous manner.
Download invitation (PDF) Lunch Briefing; "Political Economy of Caste in India"
Speaker: Prof. Pradipta Kumar Chaudhury Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies Prof. Pradipta Kumar Chaudhury from the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, is a totally home-grown academic. Nevertheless, he has been given international recognition, having been appointed Visiting Professor, Indo-French Programme, La Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, EHESS, Paris (March-April 2009), and Erasmus Visiting Fellow in Global History, Department of Economic History, the London School of Economics and Political Science, (January-April 2007). His interests are wide-ranging and include: interactions between economic, political and social processes in India during the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries; social institutions and transformations; agrarian relations, caste, commercialisation, deprivation, gender, international and internal migrations; labour history, poverty and unemployment. He is an economist yet people-centered. His long list of publications reflects these research interests. Caste is his latest research project, which explains the theme of our lunch briefing, "Political Economy of Caste in India". Caste has been casting its shadow over India's politics. Caste-based "reservations" (reserved places), in education and government employment, are supposed to benefit India's most deprived people but, in reality, they have benefited the well-off. Many intellectuals and politicians of all varieties almost unanimously hail the politics of caste identity as a move towards true equality. Some go so far as to argue that the recent rise of the lower castes in northern Indian politics and the implementation of reservations by the central government amount to a silent revolution, and that the politics of caste is secular and a bulwark against religious sectarianism The protagonists of caste politics and caste-based public policy simply cannot validate their assertions, offering only small-sample surveys that can be grossly misleading in the context of a huge country characterized by monumental diversity. Moreover, these studies typically pool castes into three large groups, which distort the real picture. Since India gained its independence, the government has systematically refused to collect sufficient data on the socio-economic aspects of caste. By using caste as a criterion in public policy, India's government is effectively treating the rich and the poor equally, thereby conveying benefits to the former. This helps co-opt the elite among the lower castes to the ruling coalition, and keeps the poor divided along caste lines. But it is hypocritical to argue that this does anything to eliminate acute deprivation.
Lunch Briefing; "India's Foreign Policy since the end of the Cold War"
Speaker: Prof. Harish Kapur Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies India's independence, in 1947, was marred by Partition and the creation of a separate Pakistan. Pakistan's attempt to seize Jammu and Kashmir, led to the first war between the two countries, in 1947-1948. Moreover, while Pakistan joined the western-oriented SEATO, in 1954, and the Baghdad Pact (later CENTO), in 1955, India became a leading member of the Non-Aligned Movement, set up at Bandung in 1955. Following China's attack on India, in 1962, India's second war with Pakistan took place in 1965. India developed closer relations with the Soviet Union (and Vietnam) as a counterweight to Pakistan's alliances with both China and the United States. India's third war with Pakistan, in 1971, resulted from the emergence of a separate Bangladesh out of the former East Pakistan. Pakistan withdrew from SEATO, in 1973, and CENTO collapsed in 1979. India and Pakistan, along with Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, then established SAARC, in 1985. The Cold War finally ended with the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, in 1991. Professor Harish Kapur analysed developments in India's Foreign Policy since then. This included: India's acquisition of nuclear weapons, in 1998; India's relations with Pakistan, also now a nuclear power, and other SAARC neighbours; the development of India's "Look East" policy, since 1992; India's continuing relationship with Russia, the thaw in relations with China and the improvement in relations with the United States (including civilian nuclear co-operation); and, of course, developments in India's long-standing relations with the European Community/European Union. Harish Kapur is currently Emeritus Professor of International Relations at the Graduate Institute of International Relations, in Geneva, and also Director of the European Institute in India and Switzerland.
Lunch Briefing; "Taiwan Culture, Policy and the New Government"
Speaker: Dr. Ann Heylen Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies Overwhelming electoral victory in 2008 brought the KMT back to power in Taiwan allowing for liberalization of cross-strait relations. These reforms have been widely interpreted as a step toward resolving political problems between China and Taiwan. However, put in the perspective of change since the lifting of martial law in 1987, they are much more ambiguous. The aim of this presentation is to place these reforms in the perspective of the past two decades of cultural policies and interpret them as part of a larger process of globalisation and democracy in Taiwan Ann Heylen is an associate professor in the Graduate Institute of Taiwan Culture, Languages and Literature at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) in Taipei, Taiwan. She holds a Ph.D. in Chinese Studies from the Catholic University of Leuven (K.U.Leuven) in Belgium. She has been a Senior Research Fellow at the Research Unit on Taiwanese Culture and Literature (TCL) at the Ruhr University Bochum in Germany and an Associate Researcher at both the Taipei Ricci Institute and the Centre for Asia Pacific Studies (CPAS) at Stockholm University, Sweden. Her areas of research expertise are Taiwanese history including seventeenth century Dutch Formosa, the Japanese colonial period and postcolonial historiography. She is one of the Founding Board Members of the European Association of Taiwan Studies (EATS) and active in promoting Taiwan Studies in Europe.
Lunch Briefing: "Resource War in Asia? The China-Japan Energy Dispute in the East China Sea"
Speaker: Ms. Theresa Fallon Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies The unresolved dispute between China and Japan over territorial rights to oil and gas fields in the East China Sea has the potential to develop into more serious problems between the two countries as they jockey for position to extract the energy deposits there. The conflict over energy between China and Japan relate to an unsettled demarcation line in the sea where the two countries' 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zones overlap. This situation is made more complicated by the history between China and Japan and resurgent nationalism on both sides. There have been eleven rounds of talks between the two sides but results remain inconclusive. A major problem is how to develop oil and gas fields that straddle the median line such as Shirakaba/Chunxiao which may affect reserves in the east side of the median line. Could Chinese development of these fields be construed as a situation of "whipstocking" similar to what Kuwait was accused of doing on the territory of Iraq and which lead to the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq and triggered the first Gulf War? Alternatively, this accident of geography could give China and Japan a chance to cooperate. During the April 2007 visit to Japan by Wen Jiabao, the two sides stated their will to develop jointly the energy resources of the East China Sea. How will the next Japanese Prime Minister approach the conflict in the East China Sea? Could the reserves one day be jointly developed by Japan and China? Theresa Fallon holds an M.A. from The University of Chicago and an M.Phil from the London School of Economics. Her area of specialization is energy. As an energy analyst, she contributed to publications for the Centre for Global Energy Studies in London, Impact Consulting, Brussels and Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Paris, writing for the Saudi Arabian Al Eqtisadiah and the International Arab Business Daily. She was the Moscow representative for PlanEcon, a Washington DC-based research and consulting firm contributing to its PlanEcon Energy Report. She lectured at the American Institute of Business and Economics in Moscow. She worked as a researcher and consultant on energy and environmental issues in China making presentations at the Chinese Academy of Social Science, to visiting business executives, took part in a scenario simulation exercise at the Central Party School and gave several interviews to the international media including the BBC and CNN. In 2007 she returned to Europe and she is no w based in Brussels.
Roundtable discussion: " Perspectives for reinforcing EU-Asia relations: the ASEM experience "
Moderator of the discussion: Shada Islam, Senior Programme Executive of the EPC Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies This meeting took stock of developments at the recent ASEM Summit in Beijing and considered the prospects for future progress. It was held under the Chatham House rule, and was addressed by several keynote speakers, including representatives of the outgoing Asian ASEM coordinators (China and Brunei) and the incoming ones (Cambodia and India). European speakers included the European Union's side, the French Presidency and the European Commission.
Conference: "European Perspectives of Taiwan" The European Institute for Asian Studies is executing an academic research on the "European Perspectives of Taiwan". The research team's aim is to publish an academic book which is accessible to the general reader and not just for the specialist on Taiwan. In their approach, the authors studied in depth how Europe looks at Taiwan, as opposed to how Taiwan looks at Europe. Hence the title of the academic research and the seminar: "European Perspectives of Taiwan". At this conference, the authors presented the outcomes of their research and study. The main objective of the conference was to receive feedback from other experts in the field, as the authors wanted to gain from the insights and comments of the participants, this conference focused on acquiring valuable output regarding the publication and the academic research being conducted in the field. This conference was held under CHATHAM HOUSE RULES.
Workshop - EU-Asia Relations: A Policy
Review
Speakers:
Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell (Secretary General and Acting Director EIAS), The workshop was aimed at unravelling the relation between Asia and the EU. As the content of the workshop was twofold, the first panel discussion focused on the "Critical Overview of the relations between the EU and Asia". The second panel highlighted the areas for future focus and policy development, tackling subjects such as the European Commission's Asia Strategy, the role and opportunities of ASEM, the Asian political regional integration, trade, security, employment and social affairs.
Lunch Briefing: "Should we trade democracy for economic growth? - Taiwan's experience vs. the Beijing Consensus" Monday 29 September 2008, from 12:30 to 14:30 at EIAS - 67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels Speaker:Prof. Masako Ikegami - Director, Centre for Pacific Asia Studies (CPAS), Stockholm University Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell - Secretary General, European Institute for Asian Studies Prof. Masako Ikegami is Professor and Director of the Centre for Pacific Asia Studies (CPAS), Stockholm University since 2001. Prof. Ikegami provided the following abstract of her presentation: During the early 1990s, Lee Kuan Yew claimed that liberal democracy was not practicable among Asian countries, notwithstanding its economic success, because of the uniqueness of traditional Asian cultural values, and its lasting bearing on the region's political systems. A decade later, such judgment was refuted by the dramatic democratization of Taiwan, while still being buttressed by the unprecedentedly expansive authoritarian regime of China. Against this background, a dilemma arises - more democracy or higher growth, which one should we cherish? The briefing probed into this issue by contrasting the political-economic developments of Taiwan and China, highlighting that without real democratization, the inherent problems connected with one-Party power concentration in a Leninist developmental state cannot be resolved eventually, despite rapid marketization. Namely, 'economic reform' is not a panacea for China's transitional crises, and a fundamental political change is needed to conclude China's unfinished reform. Her presentation was based on a paper she wrote which is available by writing to eias@eias.org.
LUNCHEON BRIEFING - PERSPECTIVES ON NORTH KOREA Tuesday 1st July 2008, from 12:30 to 14:30hrs at EIAS - 67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels Speaker:Mr. Allan Maxwell, Former European Commission Official Chair: Mr. Glyn Ford, Member of the European Parliament Based on his personal experience as a EU Senior Advisor to the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organisation in New York and as a E.C Desk Officer for Korea, Mr. Allan Maxwell reviewed perspectives on North Korea and its relations with the US, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the EU. Throughout the presentation he attempted to identify and evaluate aspects of these relations which could contribute to progress in the Six Party Talks negotiations to end the nuclear standoff with North Korea which has menaced stability, regional and internationally, for some 15 years Presentation (PDF)
Round Table Discussion on the theme
of: How do Chinese business managers consider legal or agreed provisions
to ensure environmental and social standards for the purpose of sustainable
development?
Students - Visits Another group of students from the National University of Singapore visited the Institute in their familiarization of the EU institutions on 22nd May 2008. These students were not only Singaporean but also students having origins in China, India and Malaysia. In both visits, their interest was to discuss the EU?s relations with Asia. It is evident that the EU?s visibility in Asia is increasing and this augurs well for EU-Asia relations as it goes beyond the inter-governmental relations. Expert Roundtable on Myanmar/Burma:
Moving Towards Democracy The Expert Roundtable on Myanmar/Burma ? Moving Towards Democracy was organised by the European Institute for Asian Studies in collaboration with The Centre. The discussions were held under the Chatham House Rule. Transitional Justice and Human Rights
in Cambodia - From Communist utopia to genocide. Abstract
Kassie (PDF)
Third Informal European Parliamentary
Dialogue on China - EU-China trade tensions in today's economic downturn
Taiwan's recent Parliamentary Elections
and their Implications for Cross-Strait Relations
Report
Taiwan Lunch Briefing (PDF)
The World Bank’s Strategy on Sustainable Development and Climate Change in East Asia Friday 1 Friday 2008, 12:30 to 14:30 at the European Institute for
Asian Studies (67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels) Chair: Mr. Dick Gupwell, Secretary General of the European Institute for Asian Studies Mr. Delvoie discussed the World Bank's strategy on sustainable development and climate change in the East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region, which aims at improving the quality of life, ensuring the quality of growth, and protecting the quality of the global commons in EAP. He outlined key trends shaping the region's environmental agenda and the World Bank's support to countries in the EAP region in their efforts to address environmental challenges in recent years. He also set out the key objectives and the course of action for the Bank's work in the region taking into account the great diversity of local and country conditions. Christian Delvoie, a Belgian national, is Sector Director for Sustainable Development of the East Asia and Pacific Region at the World Bank. He is a long-term development professional with extensive experience in Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East and North Africa. He holds a Master's degree in Economic and Social Sciences from Facultés Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix in Namur.
Workshop on "Labour Issues related to the EU's Free Trade Agreements with Asian Countries (ASEAN, India and the Republic of Korea): ITUC Proposal to the Commission" Thursday 31 January 2008 at the European Institute for Asian Studies (67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels) Round Table on Afghanistan Wednesday 23 January 2008 at the European Institute for Asian Studies (67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels) Speaker: Ms. Claire Galez North Korea – Another crisis looming? Tuesday 22 January 2008, 12:30 to 14:30 at the European Institute for Asian Studies (67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels) Speaker: Mr. Glyn Ford, Member of the European
Parliament Pyongyang and Washington signed up at the beginning of October to a second series of measures in an attempt to end the nuclear standoff on the Korean Peninsula following the much-delayed closure and sealing of the Yongbyon nuclear plant agreed in February and the return of International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors. We've been here before. The devil is in the detail. A senior official in the International Department of the Workers Party of Korea was confident that the United States would accept the North's disablement of their nuclear facilities with the removal of key components and their storage under strictly monitored conditions. He was less confident that the United States would accept Pyongyang's declaration. With a new round of talks in December and the simultaneous election of the South Korean President, ingredients are all ready for either breakthrough or breakdown. Glyn Ford who advocates a changing regime rather than a regime change is concerned that the issues at stake are being used by some conservatives in Japan, the United States or South Korea to suit their own agenda. Glyn Ford, Member of the European Parliament since 1984 is at present a member of the European Parliament's Delegation to the Korean Peninsula. He has visited North Korea over ten times, his last trip being in October 2007 for an EU workshop in Pyongyang on economic modernization. He has also been a Member of the Parliament’s Delegation to Japan since 1984. He is the European representative at the Northeast Asia Economic Forum's and the only European politician to be a founding member of the Forum of Democratic Leaders of the Asia-Pacific that was set up in 1994 by Kim Dae Jung, Sonia Gandhi and Corazon Aquino. He is currently a visiting Professor at the University of Illinois. He was a visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo (1983) and a POSCO fellow at the East West Centre in Hawai in summer 2005. Glyn Ford's book "North Korea on the Brink: Struggle for Survival"
was published by Pluto Press in January 2008. Second Informal European Parliament Dialogue on China – EU-China : A common Future ? Tuesday 18 December 2007 at the Altiero Spinelli Building, European Parliament It was an appropriate moment, after the 17th Chinese Communist Party Congress and the China –EU Summit, to take stock of the EU-China relationship as negotiations got under way for the new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. This was discussed in conjunction with the publication of a book entitled “EU-China: a Common Future” and a debate took place on a number of key questions raised, such as:
The book is an interesting exercise in EU-China cooperation. Edited by Stanley Crossick & Etienne Reuter, there are over 30 Chinese and European contributors. They include Glyn Ford, David Fouquet, Gustaaf Geeraerts, Fraser Cameron, Andrew Small, Pierre Defraigne, William van Kemenade and Meng Jing (several of whom were present and led the discussion). Europe-China Academic Network Annual Conference – China after the 17th Party Congress 11-12 December 2007, Crowne Plaza Hotel - Brussels Round Table Discussion on EU-China - Business Meeting Tuesday 11 December 2007, 10:00 to 12:00 at the European Institute for Asian Studies, 67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels Speakers: Prof. Jonathan Story – INSEAD,
Prof. Jeremy Clegg – Leeds Business School Trade and Business Summit – EU-India Trade Relations and beyond: Dynamics of Mergers and Acquisitions and role of Corporate Governance 3-4/12/2007 China’s Foreign Policy: Challenges and Opportunities Wednesday 14 November 2007, 12:30 to 14:30 at the European Institute for Asian Studies (67, Rue de la Loi, B-1040 Brussels) Speaker: Dr. Yuqun Shao Much has been said and written recently about China's "peaceful rise". China is very active in foreign affairs, both as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and in its bilateral relations. Dr. Yuqun Shao is currently the Deputy Director of the Department of South Asia Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies (SIIS). She was formerly the Deputy Director of the Department of American Studies and the Director of the Department of Research Management and International Exchanges. She was also a member of the Chinese observer group in the Kyrgyztan Parliamentary Election of 2005. Dr Shao has written extensively on Sino-US relations (including trade matters), on China's relations with the Russian Federation and the countries of Central Asia and on China's membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. She has also written on China's relations with Taiwan. Dr Shao brought an extended visit to Europe, where she was focussing
on current EU-China relations. She was well placed, therefore, to
provide an overall picture of China's foreign policy Partner Publication
28/06/07 Publication: Europe's World
The latest edition of this independent policy journal is now available. EurAsia e-Bulletin
21/06/07 News: Europe's
Asia strategy for 2007-13 floundering (pdf) The introduction of the new Regional Strategy Paper for Asia covering the years 2007-13 could be further delayed following a vote today in the European Parliament. 6/06/07 - News:
EU seeks to tighten asylum system by 2010 (pdf) 16/05/07 - News: Tackling Chemical Weapons Destruction in Asia (pdf) EurAsia e-Bulletin: An online news and analysis resource |
About EIAS
 The European Institute for Asian Studies is a Brussels based policy
and research think tank supported by the European Union which aims
to promote understanding and cooperation between the EU and Asia.
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