Special Issue
European Union and Asia-Pacific trade relations and economic interaction

The Asia-Pacific region is not only the largest and most populous in the world, but also home to some ofthe fastest growing economies. In recent years, the European Union (EU) has become a key trading partner for most countries in the region. Thus, the EU has concluded free trade and economic  partnerships agreements with South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Vietnam. A number of bilateral free trade negotiations are currently underway with other countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, and Malaysia. In 2014, the EU and China started negotiations for an investment agreement.
A future ASEAN-EU region-to-region agreement is currently under discussion as well.

At the same time, on the Asia-Pacific stage, important multilateral initiatives have emerged over the last years, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Beyond trade and investment, the EU is also striving to increase its role in the region to focus on issues of connectivity and governance.
Nevertheless, the EU-Asia Pacific dialogue is undergoing changes as a consequence of some profound shifts. The United Kingdom’s exit as the important gateway to Asia, a growing rivalry between China and US with pressures to take positions in binary disputes over trade and security, and the catastrophic economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic are among the most relevant shifts impacting the interregional relationship. The global health crisis, in particular, has exposed the vulnerabilities of a globalized economy, with governments around the globe rushing to hoard medical supplies and restrict exports for fear of national shortages. EU member states were not an exception to this aggressive
economic nationalism, undermining the single market principles. In Asia Pacific region,
each country also approached the crisis in its own way.

The Covid-19 crisis highlights more than ever the need for a more international cooperation and multilateral rules-based system. In this unprecedented challenging and uncertain context, how will the interregional economic relations evolve in the coming years? How will the EU and the Asia Pacific countries, including regional organizations like the ASEAN, respond to these challenges? The EU’s 2018 Strategy “Connecting Europe and Asia” seeks to promote sustainable and rules-based economic networks between both regions. Could this framework provide an opportunity to integrate economic security, political cooperation and resilience to confront global crisis?

The special issue of ANZJES “European Union and Asia-Pacific trade relations and economic interaction” will particularly welcome articles addressing these issues.

How to submit:
Article proposals should include a title and an abstract (max. 250), in English. PhD
students and early stage researchers from EUNAP partner institutions are specifically
encouraged to submit an article proposal, but we also welcome contributions from other
researchers.

Please send your article proposals to the coordinators of this special issue:

beatriz.perez@deusto.es

hajime@toyo.jp

Submission deadline: 16th November 2020
Abstract selection will be communicated by 4 th December 2020.

Once selected, full articles should be submitted in English by 30th April 2021 at the latest.
Authors are invited to follow the style guidelines as detailed on the ANZJES website:
https://esaanz.org.au/anzjes-submission-guidelines/