New Delhi: The delegation of the European Union organised a ‘Road to Schuman’ seminar in the national capital, where security experts discussed the security landscape in the region and threats dynamics and identified avenues for cooperation, ahead of the Schuman Forum in Brussels later this month.
In an official post on X, EU Ambassador to India, Herve Delphin, said, “Growing security inter-connectedness between European Union and Indo-Pacific region means more cooperation with Asian partners, including India.”
“Ahead of the next Schuman Forum which will be held in Brussels end of May, this seminar held in Delhi brought together European and Indian security experts to exchange on the security landscape in the region and on the perspectives for EU and India to increase cooperation in defence matters and in non-traditional security domains,” Delphin said in the seminar.
The EU and India have made significant steps in the past years to deepen their security and defence cooperation including counter-terrorism, cyber and maritime security. The Indo-Pacific at large and the Indian Ocean in particular are key areas where this cooperation can be further enhanced, Delegation of the European Union said in a press release.
“On May 6, the delegation of the European Union to India organised a Road to Schuman event titled ‘The security environment in the Indo-Pacific region and the EU’s role as a security actor in partnership/cooperation with India’, gathering prominent security and defence experts and practitioners, think tanks, academia, diplomats, Indian government officials and EU member state representatives,” the release added.
This initiative is part of the Road to Schuman events that will feed into the second edition of the Schuman Security and Defence Forum, which will take place in Brussels on May 28 and 29.
The seminar provided a platform for dialogue, exchange of views on specific regional security challenges, maritime security environment, and policy developments covering the EU strategy for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and India’s Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative, EU-India maritime cooperation, and regional initiatives to address international maritime security issues.
According to the release, the seminar also enabled an assessment of the current and emerging challenges in the Indo-Pacific region while identifying future avenues for cooperation between the European (EU) and India.
On the occasion, Herve Delphin, EU Ambassador to India said, “The global environment has turned more volatile and unstable with war and security threats on the rise. The EU is adapting to this new reality by enhancing its own security and defence but also by working together with international partners to address common security challenges to promote peace and stability. The growing inter-connectedness between dynamics in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region means that cooperation with Asian partners and most notably with India has become more important than ever.”
He added, “Ahead of the next Schuman Forum which will be held in Brussels end of May, this seminar held in Delhi brought together European and Indian security experts to exchange on the security landscape in the region and on the perspectives for EU and India to increase cooperation in defence matters and in non-traditional security domains.”
