EU Special Report

On March 21, 2024, the European Union (EU) and Norway signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a Green Industry Partnership. This agreement formally initiated a strategic partnership focusing on sustainable land-based raw materials and the battery value chain. The aim is to strengthen joint climate action, environmental protection efforts, and cooperation in renewable energy and industrial transition, contributing to green and digital transformation. It supports the development of a sustainable supply chain for both parties, promotes environmental, social, and governance standards, and facilitates the exchange of knowledge on raw materials.

Since 2010, Belgium has held the EU presidency for the 13th time, with its term starting on January 1, 2024, and ending on June 30, 2024. Besides facing the EU elections in June, Belgium will tackle the challenges of the upcoming six months. However, Belgium aims to focus on the transformation and commercialization of research outcomes and emphasize core issues in international cooperation.

On April 4, 2024, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) celebrated its 75th anniversary. However, it also faces the greatest security challenges since its establishment. Recent differences over how to handle the issue of Ukraine’s accession have sparked a series of discussions. Similarly, concerns within the alliance have also emerged, such as the potential return of Trump to power and Macron’s statement about “NATO’s brain death,” exposing the difficulties of the Western collective defense system.

Scholar Column

In this issue’s scholar column, we invited Professor Hong-Jen Wang from the Department of Political Science at National Cheng Kung University to write an article titled “From Europe to the Asia-Pacific: NATO’s New Security Architecture After the Vilnius Summit.” The NATO summit, held from July 11 to 12, 2023, discussed a series of European security issues, with particular attention to cooperation and exchanges with the Asian and Indo-Pacific regions. This article explores NATO’s role in global security affairs, which not only influences European countries but also significantly impacts the Asia-Pacific region and global security dynamics.