Lectures
‘The European Union and Japan: Necessary/Essential/Critical Partners in time of Geopolitical Uncertainty’
Synopsis
Global events of recent years have triggered adjustments in international geopolitics and the post-war international order.
Japan is the European Union’s closest strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific. Together we account for one-fifth of global GDP and have the scale and the values to shape global rules on trade and technology. At the same time, security in the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions has become increasingly interconnected.
EU-Japan relations have steadily and successfully transformed with the times and have expanded to encompass collaboration in areas ranging from security and defence to the digital and green transitions to partnering to help uphold shared values such as democracy, multilateralism and a rules-based international order based on the UN Charter. In this era marked by geopolitical turbulence and a return of great-power politics, the EU and Japan need to forge a deeper, more dynamic strategic partnership rooted in our strong bonds and our principled and reliable cooperation to meet the challenges of the times.
Brief Biography
Jean-Eric Paquet is the Ambassador of the European Union (EU) to Japan since autumn 2022.
He held various mandates at the European Commission, where he contributed in shaping EU policy in various fields. As the Director-General for Research and Innovation from 2018 and 2022, he set up the European Innovation Council and promoted a whole-of-government approach for R&I, notably via the creation of several EU Missions to solve major ecological, societal and economical challenges.
He gained considerable experience at international level as Director for the Western Balkans in the Directorate-General for European Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations and as EU Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania from 2004 to 2007.
From 2015 to 2018, he was Deputy Secretary-General of the European Commission, in charge of Better Regulation and Policy Coordination, covering all policy areas related to the EU Green Deal.
He also led the development of the Trans-European Transport Network Policy and was responsible for Europe’s transport infrastructure policy and investment strategies, the single European rail area, inland waterways and port policy.
In all his endeavours, he puts co-creation and systemic change at the heart of the decision-making process, and strongly believes that citizens should be more involved in shaping public policy agendas.
Lecture Date
Monday, March 23, 2026