The EU Delegation to the Philippines organised a webinar “What does the Strategic Partnership mean for EU-ASEAN Relations?" ​on 12 August 2021 to support the country’s role as ASEAN Coordinator for Dialogue Relations with the EU from 2021 to 2024.

During the webinar, policy experts from the EU and ASEAN government and diplomatic community discussed the importance of the strategic partnership between two of the world’s largest economies. Other key debates included how the two unions, with the guidance of the Philippines, aim to boost the political-security, economic, and socio-cultural aspects of the relationship. Effective collaboration within the context of the European Green Deal, the importance of the rules-based order, post-pandemic recovery, the ASEAN-EU Plan of Action 2023-2027 and the possibility of an EU-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement were also discussed at length.

The webinar attracted a high level of interest, with 750 people attending, half of whom were university students. Other participants primarily hailed from the government, diplomatic community, military and other organisations.