The European Union is stepping up work on defence, trade and diplomacy as it seeks to strengthen its resilience in a more unstable international environment, its ambassador to South Korea has written in an op-ed.
The EU will “stand firm” in its commitment to international law and the UN Charter, Ugo Astuto, EU Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, wrote in an article published by The Korea Times, cited on Wednesday in a release of the European External Action Service (EEAS)
He said the bloc has been making greater use of its “market, trading reach” and “economic security levers”, while also investing in “democratic resilience at home” to counter foreign information manipulation.
The EU is also pursuing what he described as a “generational project” towards European “strategic autonomy” — a term used in Brussels to describe reducing dependence on others in key areas such as security, energy and technology, Astuto wrote.
The ambassador stated that the EU is trying to avoid relying on “a single supplier for vital assets”, including in areas such as defence, energy, critical raw materials and “strategic technologies”.
He described South Korea as a “key partner in the Indo-Pacific”, pointing to existing links including a free trade agreement, “green and digital partnerships”, and a security partnership.
Defence, trade deals and support for the UN
On security and defence, Astuto wrote Europe “must be able to deter and to counter” in order to protect its territory, economy and democracy.
The EU has “done more on defence in the last year than in decades before”, he added, without giving figures.
He also said the EU wants to work with partners “within NATO” and with “U.S. allies and beyond”, including through security and defence partnerships with countries in the Indo-Pacific such as South Korea.
Threats were coming “from all domains — whether cyber or space”, he added.
Ukraine remains central to the EU’s security concerns, Astuto wrote, saying Russia was “not winning this war” and that the EU would “always stand with Ukraine”.
He said the EU was working with Ukraine and partners to secure “real long-term security” and a “full, just and lasting peace”.
On trade, Astuto noted that the EU’s free trade agreement with South Korea, which entered into force in 2011, had delivered “economic growth”.
He also listed recent trade agreements the EU had struck “including with India, Indonesia, Australia and Mercosur”, and said the EU was diversifying value chains for “chips and clean tech” as well as supplies of critical raw materials.
In diplomacy, he wrote supporting the UN Charter and defending human rights are part of the EU’s global outreach, adding that the EU and its member states together make the “single largest financial contribution to the UN system year after year.”
