• Abstract

East Asia is home to some of the world’s largest and fastest growing economies, and several of European Union’s biggest economic and trade partners. And yet, years after the emergence of first discourses on regional integration East Asia remains fragmented. While economic interconnectedness is increasingly felt between states in the region, as well as across regions, East Asia is unable to overcome deep-rooted historical legacies. China (together with Hong Kong and Macao), Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and ASEAN account for about 28% of EU’s global trade in goods and services and East Asia offers rapidly expanding market opportunities for EU member states. However, at the same time there is much at stake for Europe if security and stability of the region deteriorated due to territorial disputes. David O’Sullivan, Chief Operation Officer of the EEAS will come to share his perspective on what are the priorities of EU’s engagement with the East Asian region.