Perceptions of Asia in Europe

The question of how Asia is perceived by the European Union is becoming increasingly relevant for European as well as for Asian policy makers. The more successful Asia and emerging countries like China and India become, the more vulnerable the European public and all involved stakeholders are to fall victim to old and new stereotypes. A lack of knowledge may result in the EU becoming more vulnerable to developing prejudice towards Asia. The new research project “Asia in the Eyes of Europe” aims to identify, measure and compare public awareness and perceptions of Asia within the European Union. The research is to deliver an analysis of Europe’s cognitive outlook towards Asia. It tracks the existing landscape of perceptions of Asia within the EU and seeks to contribute to, deepen and enhance European–Asian understanding. A study of Asia’s image in Europe can thus help Europeans and Asians to understand in how far their interaction impacts on the shaping of institutions of regional governance that can complement structures of global governance.     

Comparing Conditions for Quality Peace:Contemporary East Asia v. Post-WarWestern Europe *

: This article deals with two of the strongest conclusions from generalstudies on the causes as well as absence of interstate war: the importance of territorialdisputes and the significance of regime type. The first is termed the “territorial peace”hypothesis; the second is known in the literature as the “democratic peace” proposition.This article discusses if these two issues have to be settled prior to the building ofquality peace between states that have a history of war among them. These findingsare used to analyze the actual Western European experience since World War II andthen relating this to the East Asian situation today. In this way this article also points toimportant differences. Still, the territorial issues take on particular role if the East Asianregion is to move towards more durable and positive conditions, what might constituteingredients of quality peace. At that moment, also Real politik concerns enter theequation.     

实质和平的条件比较:当代东亚与战后西欧

在关于国家间战争(或非战争)原因的一般研究中,有两项最重要的论断,即领土争端的重要性以及政权类型的重要意义。前者在文章中的术语表述为领土和平假设;后者在一般文献中经常归纳为民主和平论题。作者致力于探讨的主要问题是:彼此有过战争历史的国家之间建立实质和平,是否以上述两项议题的解决为前提条件。相关结论将用于分析第二次世界大战之后的西欧经验,其后将联系当今东亚形势展开分析。同样,文章还指出其中存在的、具有关键意义的不同之处。其中,东亚区域在向更持久的积极状态迈进时,必须考虑领土主权议题具有的特殊含义,后者构成实质和平的关键要素。此时,对于现实政治的关注也将加入相关国家的考量与平衡过程之中。     

Wind energy development in East Asia and Europe

Over the last decade, wind energy has emerged as the most important non‐hydro renewables sector, contributing significantly to global efforts on developing low-carbon energy systems. In terms of grid electricity generation, its power output has increased almost 16-fold since 2000 and currently produces around 3 times that of solar photovoltaic, 4 times more than biomass and 20 times more than geothermal installations globally. Europe and East Asia have been at the forefront of wind energy development, together accounting for almost 70 % of total installed capacity and most of the world’s largest wind turbine producers. This paper begins by providing an overview of historic and recent developments in wind energy and then discusses key techno-innovation, production and internationalisation issues before looking at policy approaches taken by European and East Asian countries to renewable energy generally and wind energy more specifically. Finally, obstacles to the future development of the wind energy sector are discussed.     

东亚区域经济合作和美洲自由贸易区的比较

20世纪90年代以来,区域经济合作已成为全球经济一体化的主要实现形式。东亚与美洲无疑是全球区域经济合作引人瞩目的两个地区。本文把东亚区域经济合作划分为六种类型和层次,重点对东亚和美洲地区在区域经济合作和创立自由贸易区过程中经济发展水平差异、政治利益冲突、一体化模式的异同和区域合作等几方面进行比较,从而为中国全面了解和参与东亚和美洲地区经济一体化进程提供有益的参考。     

Monetary policy and overinvestment in East Asia and Europe

The paper analyzes the role of monetary policy for cyclical movements of investment and asset markets in East Asia and Europe based on a Mises-Hayek overinvestment framework. It is shown how the gradual global decline of interest rates has triggered wandering overinvestment cycles in Japan, Southeast Asia, and China. Similarly, it is shown how a one-size monetary policy within the European Monetary Union has not preserved the European Monetary Union from idiosyncratic economic development and crisis because of uncoordinated fiscal policies. With monetary policy crisis management being argued to impede financial and economic restructuring, a timely exit from ultra-expansionary monetary policies is recommended for both East Asia and Europe to reconstitute economic stability and growth.     

Trade relations between Europe and East Asia

The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) framework was created in 1996, with the primary purpose of strengthening economic, political and cultural relations among the 15 countries of the European Union and ten East Asian states. This paper examines the origins of these recent economic linkages, in a global and inter-regional context.¶The paper charts the principal elements of ASEMs economic pillar to date, assesses the influence of multilateral trading environments (notably the WTO) on the region-to-region dialogue and examines ASEMs impact on intra-regional economic developments, especially in the case of East Asia.¶The paper will focus in particular on the flagship projects of trade and investment facilitation, to discuss whether and to what extent ASEM itself can be seen to further cooperation and coordination in specific fields of activity.¶The final part of the paper aims to analyse the prospects for future economic relations between East Asia and Europe, in the wake of a devastating financial crisis in Asia, in the context of a continued war on terror which, since the Bali bombing has had an even more immediate impact on Asia, and in the changing global economic environment as regulated by the tenets of the WTO.     

Islam and politics in Europe and in Asia: Comparative reflections

This article compares the role of religion, and of Islam in particular, in politics in Europe and in South and South East Asia. It starts out with the policy dilemmas facing France, Europe's most secular country that also has Europe's largest immigrant Muslim community. After long debates nation-wide Muslim organisation is now sponsored by the state in order to strengthen moderate Islam in France. In contrast, explicit Christian parties are in decline in most of Europe. Those who are still electorally successful are Christian mostly in name only and have turned into centre-right conservative people's parties instead. Religious discourse in politics has hence vanished almost entirely in Europe. In difference in Asia Islamic opposition parties have managed to set increasingly the political agenda in the majority Islamic states. In those countries with an Islamic minority their public religious agitation serves to strengthen their ethnic minority identity. Meaningful bi-continental dialogue needs to be aware of this discrepancy in religious politics.     

East Asia and Europe—partners in global politics?

Practitioners and researchers have repeatedly portrayed the Asia–Europe Meeting as an institution that is not fully able to realize its agenda-setting potential in global negotiations or discourses. This paper argues that this assessment basically holds true even after 10 years of cooperation: Although ASEM tries to improve on this meagre balance by establishing a virtual secretariat and advancing common positions on trade, finance and environmental issues, cooperation between Asian and European states is frequently marred by the pitfalls of informality and the antagonisms of different cooperation cultures. Yet, successful moulding of common positions on climate change resulting in the adoption of a respective declaration may indicate an improved multilateral effectiveness of ASEM. Howard Loewen is senior research fellow at the Institute of Asian Studies (now part of GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) in Hamburg.     

A comparative study on corporate sponsorships in Asia and Europe

This article gives a brief introduction to the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) movement in Asia and Europe with special reference to the range of sponsoring activities offered by the multinationals in both regions. 46 firms¹ were chosen from two Asian countries and five European countries respectively. Their sponsorship activities were compared by category, funding format as well as publicity. All of the sampled companies showed their social commitment by sponsoring a wide range of community, national and international projects. Environment is the key subject here, while differences of sponsoring category do exist between Asian and European firms. Research Method – Review of corporate website, brochures, annual reports to assess their sponsoring events, organisations and other programmes.Forbes Global 500 list: http://www.fprnes. com/2003/07/07internationaland.html.     

The solar power policies and markets of Asia and Europe

This article examines and compares the design and roll-out of solar policies of three major markets in Asia and Europe in 2012. The photovoltaic (“PV”) and concentrated solar power (“CSP”) policies of India, Thailand, Malaysia, in Asia and Germany, Italy and Spain in Europe are analysed on the basis of policy documents publicly available on web portals of the relevant government authorities in the respective countries in addition to independent reports and studies. The aim here is to measure and compare the form and quantum of state support extended to the solar power generation sector in these six fairly comparable countries in Asia and Europe, provide an overview of the design and deployment of solar power policies and estimate the costs of carbon mitigation through solar power in the six countries. The countries were chosen on the basis of available information and data in English from primary sources such as government policy documents, announcements and reports, and the scale of solar power policies and their relative maturity.     

Social norms and religion in Europe and Asia. A cultural comparison

  I shall describe moral sanctions in countries where Christian values prevail and then give an outline of the moral system in Theravada Buddhist countries. Then I shall point out some of the different orientations of the two systems. Finally I shall draw attention to some practical social consequences of the perceived differences.     

Region-building and critical juncture: Europe and Northeast Asia in comparative perspective

China, Japan, and Korea have begun to engage one another vigorously since the 1997 crisis. As intraregional economic ties have further deepened and broadened, interconnectedness in cultural and political aspects has risen rapidly in a variety of forms. Decision-makers and intellectuals in China, Japan, and Korea have been floating ideas and interests for establishing various types of Northeast Asian community formation. New security dialogues and co-operation frameworks also emerge. Accordingly, the rapidly growing Northeast Asia is likely to emerge as an identifiable regional community. With the incipient emergence of regional community in Northeast Asia, Northeast Asian region-building becomes a salient issue of major academic and policy debates. Yet, in spite of the recent mushrooming of research in and attention to the region-building, the questions regarding within what surrounding and under what situation regional community can be built, as well as what motivates people to choose region-building, and when and how state system can be transformed into a regional community remains only partly resolved. In order to solve this puzzle, this paper will compare the current Northeast Asian region-building with the early stage of European region-building, arguing that while there are important differences in evolution, format, and kind of region-building in Europe and Northeast Asia, critical juncture is influential in region-building.     

Comparative transformation. Experiences in East Europe and prospects in East Asia

This article1. retraces the origins of the revolutions in East Europe, set against the more retarding socio-political causalities in East Asia,2. benchmarks the sequence of economic transformation in East Europe against the limited and incomplete economic reforms in East Asia,3. sets postcommunist political developments in East Europe against scenarios for political change in East Asia, and4. compares the social crisis in East Europe with prospects for more stable social development in the Confucian cultures of East Asia.The article concludes with the need for negotiated democratic regime change in the remaining Communist dictatorships in East Asia.. While economic structures still require a sustained effort for systemic change towards genuine market economies, its social consequences are expected to be less dramatic than in Eastern Europe.     

Cosmopolitan democracy and the national identity question in Europe and East Asia

This paper seeks to apply the idea of cosmopolitan democracyto the question of national identity in a comparative contextin the European Union and East Asia. The application of theidea of cosmopolitan democracy to East Asia is constrained bya number of factors, and hence cannot be understood as a universalconcept, but rather as a contingent regional phenomenon thatis dependent on certain conditions. The paper concludes thatEast Asia will find its own approach to the question of nationalidentity and that this has been demonstrated to some extentby China's handling of Hong Kong.