Deploying Europe’s Economic Security Policy in the Indo-Pacific Region

Economic security policy and strategy toward the Indo-Pacific region are both current areas of focus among policymakers in France and across the Europe Union. However, there is little convergence between these two policy areas – even though the Indo-Pacific region potentially offers interesting opportunities to deploy aspects of European economic security policy, there has been little effort to apply European economic security policy to the region so far. This is despite the fact that the Indo-Pacific region is increasingly emerging as a coherent regional economic space to which economic security considerations are not only relevant, but also central, as demonstrated by the rise of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (“IPEF”) and the Quadrilateral grouping of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States (the “Quad”). These cooperative frameworks share, among other features, a lack of declared interest in recruiting new members from the EU Member States. The focus on economic security in these formats differentiates conversations about “the Indo-Pacific” from earlier discussions of “the Asia-Pacific,” which tended to be focused on free trade, market access and the forces of globalization.

This policy paper aims to highlight how France and the EU can advance their economic security interests in the Indo-Pacific region. In particular, it stresses the importance of a clear and proactive political vision for the creation of partnerships aimed at economic and commercial diversification with certain Indo-Pacific countries. Strategic diversification appears to be one of the most promising ways of reducing risks to our economic security, especially for anticipating supply chain disruptions in Europe during times of crisis and reducing their impact. However, although a shift in this direction has begun and is gradually becoming evident in decisions made by certain EU companies, this trend is not yet clear or irreversible. The paper offers recommendations for strengthening Europe’s economic security policy in four key areas: controlling technology transfers, responding to economic coercion, securing critical infrastructure and strengthening supply chain resilience. In sum, conceiving of the Indo-Pacific as a space for the effective application of European economic security policy can help reinforce the European footprint in this region.

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