Brussels Indo-Pacific Dialogue 2025

Over the past four years, Europe, the United States (US) and their Indo-Pacific partners have increasingly highlighted the growing geostrategic interdependence between the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions. The war in Ukraine has often been framed within this broader global context, with China’s support for Russia and the presence of North Korean troops in Ukraine cited as clear signs of this interconnection. According to this logic, defending international norms in Ukraine also sends a warning message to actors like China that are considering aggressive moves elsewhere, such as in Taiwan. In order to better manage this interdependence, Europe, the US and their Indo-Pacific partners have deepened their cooperation in recent years.

However, the current Trump administration is now urging European and Indo-Pacific partners to focus strategically on their respective regions: Europe on Russia, and Indo-Pacific partners on China. This approach, emphasising resource prioritisation, portrays the war in Ukraine as a strategic distraction. In response to the uncertainty of the US’ commitments in Europe, Europeans are stepping up efforts to take primary responsibility for both conventional defence in Europe and for Ukraine’s assistance, while Indo-Pacific partners focus on strengthening their own defences and intra-regional cooperation.

Despite this push for regional prioritisation, Europeans recognise the Indo-Pacific’s strategic and economic importance, highlighting the value of continued cross-regional cooperation, particularly in trade, technology, supply chain security and defence cooperation. Moreover, the growing alignment between China, Russia, North Korea and Iran is showing remarkable resilience, creating strategic dilemmas for the US and their partners, and requiring a broader strategic outlook.

At the fourth edition of the “Brussels Indo-Pacific Dialogue”, on 2 December 2025, which brought together experts and policymakers from Asia, Europe and North America, CSDS addressed how European and Indo-Pacific countries can reconcile the need to prioritise security in their regions with a broader, cross-regional perspective.

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