From Europe’s strategic settings to China’s overcapacities – a view through an antipodean lens

From 21 to 26 June 2026, FES Australia & New Zealand in close cooperation with colleagues in Brussels and in Berlin conducted a study tour for experts from the Lowy Institute, the Australian National University, the University of Sydney, the Australia Institute and the Australia Chair of the Center for Strategic and International Studies to compare and discuss foreign, security and economic policy settings. They met with representatives of the European External Action Service, different directorates of the European Commission, the German Federal Foreign Office and parliamentarians at the EP and the German Bundestag, as well as with representatives of labour unions and industry associations and with many think-tankers and academics who specialize in geo-economic and geopolitical issues and regional issues concerning China and the Indo-Pacific.

In the months following the first FES-organized exchange between experts and think-tankers from Australia, New Zealand and Germany, the war in the Middle East and the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz had highlighted additional risks and vulnerabilities. It thus came as no surprise that geo-economic discussions took much room in the conversations the delegates had in Brussels and Berlin. As the trip took place in the week following the European Council’s strategic debate on the issue of global macroeconomic imbalances, and just before the visit by Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, the delegates were able to directly tap into the complexity of the challenges facing Europe. Comparing perspectives between economies that are essentially complementary with those of China and Asia, as is the case in New Zealand and Australia, and those marked by increasing competition, like Europe and most notably Germany, provided new insights to all involved around trade and industrial policy challenges. On the European side, the ongoing security threat that Russia and the illegal war of aggression in Ukraine pose, was often a first element of reflection in all debates. Also notable were the similarities between the different regions when it came to the interplay between the security and geo-economic challenges on the one hand, and domestic political developments on the other, especially regarding questions of social cohesion and the defense of democratic values and processes.

Following these fruitful engagements and the contacts previously established during the visit to Australia by German experts, FES Australia & New Zealand will now work towards setting up a more regular exchange on individual topics. These could include further joint reflections on the consequences of different scenarios for future US-China relations on the strategic options for Europe, Australia and New Zealand, or on the cooperation possibilities that arise in the space of the clean energy transformation our societies are undergoing. Another issue that offers itself to deeper reflection are comparable dynamics in our respective societies at the interface of foreign and macro-economic policy challenges and their repercussions in society and domestic political developments.