The two-year project “Think Next, Act Next – The Next Gen EU-ASEAN Think Tank Dialogue” funded by the European Union (EU) was launched in 2021. The aims of the project were to encourage greater collaborative research between the EU and ASEAN, inspire joint research and foster greater awareness of the EU’s engagement in the ASEAN region.
Since 2021, the Political Dialogue Programme Asia of the Konrad-Adenauer Stiftung in partnership with the Asian Vision Institute (AVI), Cambodia and the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV) have promoted the exchange of knowledge between think tanks and researchers in the two regions. 3 research clusters on security, sustainable development and connectivity were established. Over 70 young researchers from think tanks and academic institutions in the EU and ASEAN worked together on policy papers and academic research. These EANGAGE fellows received regular inputs through lectures, background discussions, cluster meetings and training workshops.
A key activity of the project was to organise two think tank conferences bringing together think tank representatives from both the EU and ASEAN regions. The first conference was held in Siem Reap, Cambodia in April 2022 and focused on the theme of sustainable development.
The EANGAGE conference on “Advancing Together for ASEAN-EU Security and Connectivity” held in Hanoi, Vietnam on 3 – 5 November 2022 was the second and final conference of the EANGAGE project. The conference featured keynote speeches, panel discussions, skills development speeches and simulation exercises focused on the theme of ASEAN-EU cooperation on security and connectivity.
More than 50 participants from across Europe and the ASEAN region attended the conference, including senior policymakers, diplomats and think tank representatives. The keynote addresses were delivered by H.E. Giorgio Aliberti, Ambassador of the European Union to Vietnam and H.E. Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh, Former Deputy Foreign Minister of Vietnam and Former Vietnam ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) Leader.
For the full report please see the PDF-document.
