While Europe and Asia are linked through the strength of existing economic, political, social and cultural partnerships, the understanding of the EU in Asia remains remarkably low. This communicative deficit breeds misperception and misunderstandings in terms of the clarity of EU objectives to promote stronger partnerships throughout Asia. To help address this weakness, the co-organisers of the Europe-Asia Policy Forum will hold a “Stakeholders” Roundtable to examine the issue of “How should the EU package itself to
Asia?". The meeting will take place on the morning of the 9th of April. The Roundtable will bring together opinion leaders drawn from Academia, the EU institutions, the Media sector and Brussels-based think tanks to discuss the visibility of the EU throughout Asia and examine the current policies in place to communicate the external image of the EU in Asia.
The Roundtable will draw on the findings of the ongoing research project the “EU through the Eyes of Asia”. A unique research project carried out by the partners of the ASEF initiative the European Studies in Asia (ESiA) Network, which provides comparative and scientifically valid feedback of attitudes and citizens’ perceptions of the EU in Asia. In each locality, the project systematically assesses daily representations of the EU in
reputable local news media, as well as the EU’s imagery among the general public and the EU’s vision among the national stakeholders and decision-makers.
