Asia

February 2nd: Discussion Seminar: Are we becoming Japanese now? Japan�s experience and its relevance to Europe.

Europe and Japan share many similarities. Both are long-time allies of the United States, have for decades held the biggest economies and richest populations in the world, and were early givers of development assistance to third regions. On Thursday 2 February Clingendael Asia Studies organizes a discussion seminar about the relevance of Japan�s experience to European countries. Read more�

Debating China's global reputation in Beijing

The Charhar Institute, China's foremost public diplomacy think tank, and the Clingendael Institute will jointly hold the Charhar-Clingendael Public Diplomacy Forum, which is to take place on May 19-20 2012. Read more�

China and the Danger of a US-Iran War

The five-year multilateral diplomatic struggle to rein in Iran�s nuclear programme and the broader psychological war against the Islamic regime have been overshadowed for most of 2011 by the turmoil of the �Arab Spring�. Yet as new unilateral Western sanctions threaten full-scale economic war and as the rhetoric of Israeli or US military action against Iran escalates, the crisis has now taken centre stage in world politics. So far China, together with Russia, holds off UN sanctions and advocates dialogue and diplomatic negotiations to prevent further escalation. However, in a contribution to the Clingendael Asia Forum, Willem van Kemenade argues that should the threat of war continue to grow China may be forced to play a more prominent role. Read more�

Re-engaging Europe with Asia conference

14-15 December Clingendael will host the closing conference for the Europe-Asia Policy Forum. An official event of the Europe-Asia Policy Forum (EUforAsia Project) Re-engaging Europe with Asia is the IIAS-led closing event of the Europe-Asia Policy Forum and will take place on the eve of the preparation of the European Commission�s �Regional Programming for Asia (2013-2020) Strategy Paper�. The conference will explore the topics of economic integration, security, cooperation in the field of higher education, energy, and will address the future of the EU�s strategy toward Asia. The Europe-Asia Policy Forum (EUforAsia) was designed to target relevant stakeholders in Asia-Europe affairs and policy-making with information on contemporary issues regarding EU-Asia. Over the last three years, EUforAsia has organised roundtables, briefings and conferences with the aim of enhancing EU-Asia cooperation and awareness on issues of mutual interest in areas such as sustainable development, regional integration and governance. The EUforAsia consortium consists of the International Institute of Asian Studies (IIAS), the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), the Singapore Institute for International Affairs (SIIA) and the European Policy Centre (EPC). It is supported by funding from the European Union. Read more�

India and Australia: The End of Estrangement?

Recently Australia�s Prime Minister Julia Gillard declared that Australia is willing to reconsider its ban on uranium exports to India. The ban is widely believed to be a major obstacle to a stronger India�Australia relationship, and as such to stronger quadrilateral security cooperation that involves also the United States and Japan. In his contribution to Clingendael Asia Forum, Vikas Kumar argues why we should not expect a dramatic improvement in the India�Australia as a consequence of lifting the ban. Read more�

Lunchlezing Redt China de Euro? 20 december 2011

De Europese Unie probeert met moeite de financi�le crisis te beheersen terwijl de Chinese economie blijft groeien. Zal China de EU helpen bij het oplossen van de financi�le problemen of zullen Chinese investeringen juist leiden tot verdeeldheid binnen de EU en een zwakkere Euro op de lange termijn? Op dinsdag 20 december organiseert het Clingendael European Studies Programme een lunchlezing over de rol van China in de Eurocrisis. Twee China-kenners, Henk Schulte Nordholt en Garrie van Pinxteren, zullen beiden een lezing geven en met elkaar in debat gaan over de politieke en economische rol van China in de Eurocrisis. Read more�

Clingendael Energy Conference: �New Energy Technologies: Global Competition, Innovation and China�

Global competition is increasing for a number of new clean energy technologies that have seen rapid growth in the past decade. Although Europe, Japan and the United States have been traditional leaders in this field, their position is coming under pressure as China is emerging both as a global competitor and major growth market. In a seminar and debate from 13.30-17.30 on 30 November 2011, academic and industry experts will discuss the current status and trends of energy technology development and innovation � both worldwide and in China � and debate what could be Europe�s role and strategy.. Read more �

50 Years of Diplomatic Relations: The Republic of Korea, the Netherlands and the EU

At the occasion of 50 years of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Netherlands, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the Netherlands and Clingendael Asia Studies will hold a seminar on the relations between the Republic of Korea, the European Union and the Netherlands 31st of October. Topics to be addressed include the past 50 years of Republic of Korea -EU and Republic of Korea -Dutch relations, inter-Korean relations beyond the nuclear threat, the future of Republic of Korea -EU relations in a global context, and public diplomacy in the Republic of Korea and the Netherlands. Read more �

Embassies and Social Media in China: the Canadian Case

Social media in China are experiencing explosive growth. China's "netizens" are so numerous, active, and outspoken that they are causing unease in the Chinese authorities. 11th of October, Clingendael will organize a roundtable with Mark McDowell, Head of Public Diplomacy at the Embassy of Canada in Beijing. Like other Embassies in China, Canada decided that it had to be part of this chaotic and exciting environment. Read more �

Not Just Politics: A Different Approach to Supporting Ethnic Minorities in China

In this new Clingendael Asia Forum Article, Ward Warmerdam argues that a number of demonstrations in Inner Mongolia during spring 2011 highlighted several important aspects of China�s policies towards ethnic minorities, the actual situation in that region, and the sensitivity of the Chinese government to Western political involvement. As with the disturbances in Tibet in 2008 and Xinjiang in 2009, the authorities immediately blamed foreign meddling for the unrest. If Western governments and pressure groups really want to help and support China�s ethnic minorities, a different approach from the current political one is needed. Read more �