Written by Mathieu Droin and Emanuele Rossi

Irrespective of the strategic framing, France and Italy are both seeking ways to prevent disruptions to freedom of navigation and political instability in this vast region given the potential ripple effects for their domestic stability, notably due to illegal migration.

Written by Megan Khoo

Anything less than preventing a Huawei factory in France blatantly disregards France’s current restrictions on Huawei, French national security, and the greater security of the EU.

Written by Dr Alfred Gerstl and Nick Nieschalke

The investment in the Global Gateway Initiative (GGI) indicates the EU’s stronger global focus on infrastructure and connectivity partnerships within a dedicated scheme.

Written by Rita Durão

Consolidating a strategy towards the Indo-Pacific would not only signify Portugal's commitment towards enhancing its global presence through a multilateral approach but also present opportunities for fostering economic growth, strengthening diplomatic ties, and promoting regional stability.

Written by Dr Tamás Matura

Playing a balancing act between the East and the West, Orbán hopes to boost his international political clout and the economic development of Hungary by cosying up to other illiberal world leaders such as China’s Xi Jinping.

Written by Marta Ferdebar

The contrasting perspectives showcased by the EU and China's official government sites and media concerning the summit highlight the impact of unique government priorities and underscore the need for sustained diplomatic efforts to build mutual understanding.

Written by Matthias van Herel

Whether Beijing will find a partner in the new Polish government will heavily depend on Beijing’s capacity to reinvent the BRI, as its current incarnation is losing momentum in Europe.

Written by Megan Khoo and Anouk Wear

The UPR is an opportunity to enhance what EU member states have been practising at the domestic and EU level over the past five years, and one which complements and solidifies their positions.

Written by Dr Gorana Grgic

Drawing upon member states’ existing strategies in the region, the EU's strategy tactfully treads a fine line — seeking greater assertiveness while preserving space for cooperation, even in its dealings with China.

Written by Dr Rafal Ulatowski

Germany is too weak militarily to change the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific. Its military presence satisfies the expectations of the regional middle powers and of the United States while having only a minor adverse impact on Germany’s relations with China.

Written by Dr Simona Grano

The key question remains to define and push for concrete tools and policies through which Europe can transform its growing solidarity towards Taiwan into a foundational basis of Europe’s China policy, without failing because of hindrances developing out of tight economic dependencies with China.

Written by Dr Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

Taiwan is a frontline democracy, which makes it an indispensable partner for Europe, one it should learn from as it braces for its own elections, with interference and information manipulation expected to increase, in particular from China and Russia.

Written by Dr Francesca Ghiretti

Holding the first in-person summit since 2019 is an important achievement, and the EU has been able to express some important concerns to Xi Jinping directly; however, the words — especially from China — demonstrate Beijing still views the EU mostly as an economic partner.

Written by Dr Gabriele Abbondanza

All things considered, it seems evident that Italy is ready to develop and issue a formal Indo-Pacific strategy that considers national, European, and Indo-Pacific interests as vital components of a strategic whole.

Written by Dr Thomas Wilkins

Despite dangers closer to home and straitened finances, London does appear to be committed to the region, even if the implementation of some aspects of its new strategic approach remains patchy.

Written by Sjorre Couvreur

The adoption of the Anti-Coercion Instrument entails an important step for the EU’s adjustment to an increasingly geoeconomic context in international trade policy.

Written by Dr Hannes Gohli

To make judgements on research security, but also business transactions and diplomatic relations with China, establishing a knowledge base on the country is of vital importance. Yet precisely at this critical moment, when European governments are calling for more China competence, student numbers in Sinology are declining.

Written by Perle Petit

By asserting its autonomy and crafting an alternative narrative about possible relations with China, particularly against the EU’s attempts at creating a unified foreign policy stance, Hungary has positioned itself as a ‘Trojan horse’ for Beijing to embed itself in the EU.

Written by Daniela Braun, Marie Antoinette de Jesus, and Sophiya Navarro

Increasing EU-Philippine maritime security cooperation is a positive development that reflects both actors’ mutual interests and values, as well as their willingness to engage with each other and other Indo-Pacific actors.

Written by Dylan Motin

France’s Indo-Pacific strategy mainly arises from the fear of China. Despite French official discourse, it is clearly on the American side of the containment fence and will remain there for the foreseeable future.

Written by Hendrik A. Pasligh

As the European arms industry scrambles to manage the needs of and lessons from Russia’s war against Ukraine, Germany has sought to rekindle its defence-industrial cooperation with India.

Written by Mathieu Droin

The limitations of what NATO can offer or execute in the Indo-Pacific raise the question of whether there may be other more appropriate frameworks to publicly tackle shared security challenges between the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific.

Written by Belinda Schäpe

Germany’s China Strategy is a first attempt to address climate change in a key foreign policy strategy, encapsulating all related areas, and going beyond empty cooperation rhetoric.

Written by Francesco Giovanni Lizzi

While an automatic continuation of the MoU might dissuade a Chinese reaction, it would squander the political capital invested to reassure the American allies. Conversely, exiting the Initiative would complicate Chinese-Italian relations even further since an alternative agreement with Beijing would be needed.

Written by Mathieu Droin

The brewing Indo-Pacific architecture is inherently “flexilateral” due to the breadth of factors and the rapidly changing stakes that determine its many actors’ positions.

Written by Dr Jeremy Garlick

The BRI’s unfulfilled potential in the region leaves the connectivity and cooperation aims of the initiative largely on the shelf, with the main successes for China located in Western Balkan countries that are not EU members.

Written by Dr William Hurst

The bet that security fears could be addressed to allow the resumption of progress on trade did not pay off. China lost a significant opportunity to re-open more fully to the world and deepen its economic ties with arguably its most important trading partner (the Eurozone).

Written by Gesine Weber

If France wants to seize the opportunity for asserting leadership among Europeans on the Indo-Pacific, it will also be up to the President to preach what the country already practices.

9DASHLINE asks several experts to assess what Russia’s war in Ukraine means for the international order and what the consequences may be for issues in the Indo-Pacific.

Written by Axel Nordenstam

As Ukraine is the top European priority, it would make sense for Indo-Pacific partners to consider joint projects in and for Ukraine. The reconstruction of Ukraine could benefit from such cooperation.