The recently published National Security Strategy of the United States only confirmed what many in European capitals had already accepted as an inconvenient truth: Europe needs to take care of its security on its own.
In the Indo-Pacific, the situation is not entirely dissimilar. The countries in the region are also struggling with their alliances with the US. As the strategic environment for South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines worsens, they are increasingly eyeing Europe as a partner—for defense industrial cooperation, for capacity building initiatives, and for enhancing interoperability through joint exercises.
South Korea: A Defense Industrial Powerhouse
While European countries largely shut down their defense industries after the end of the Cold War, peace was never officially established on the Korean peninsula after the Korean War ended in 1953. Thus, South Korean defense companies kept producing. Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine and the sudden surge in demand for ammunition and weapons systems in Europe then opened a window of opportunity for South Korean defense manufacturers.
In 2024, 46 percent of South Korean defense exports went to Poland, underscoring Europe’s growing relevance for Seoul’s defense industry. However, South Korean firms no longer just export weapons to Europe, but entire production lines. As South Korean companies seek to enter the European market, Hanwha, a leading South Korean weapons manufacturer, plans to build a precision missile manufacturing plant in eastern Germany.
A central goal for companies like Hanwha is to expand local production and build more resilient supply chains in Europe, which they view as a crucial partner in their broader diversification strategy. One particularly promising area for future cooperation with Germany is the development of drone and counter-drone capabilities.
These efforts align with South Korea’s ambition to become the world’s fourth-largest defense exporter and to reduce its longstanding military dependence on the United States. At the same time, growing military cooperation between North Korea and Russia highlights the need for joint scenario planning between South Korea and European partners to address shared security challenges.
The Philippines: Multiplying Partnerships
The Philippines’ main security concern is the outbreak of a conflict in its surrounding waters. China’s aggressive conduct in the South China Sea, the territory of which it claims almost entirely, increases the risk of unintended events and accidents. In many instances in the past, vessels of the Chinese navy, coast guard, or maritime militia have come dangerously close to Filipino vessels, cutting them off or deploying lasers or water cannons against them.
Under the defense treaty between the Philippines and the US, Washington is obliged to come to the defense of its ally. There is increasing doubt, however, about whether the administration of US President Donald Trump would be willing to risk war with China over a few disputed rocks in the South China Sea. While Trump’s strategy vis-à-vis Beijing remains unclear, allies in the Indo-Pacific fear that he might perceive China as less of a strategic competitor than his predecessors, and instead sees opportunities for economic deals. Consequently, concerns over the US reducing its military focus on the Southeast Asian region are growing.
As a result, the Philippines wants to diversify its partnerships to minimize the possibility of conflict and to help deter China from asserting its position. In the past two years, Manila has already expanded and intensified its defense ties and concluded several security arrangements with partners beyond its region: Germany and the Philippines signed a defense agreement last year, aimed at enhancing joint activities and rearmament efforts. The agreement follows similar ones signed with Canada and New Zealand, as well as a reciprocal access agreement with Japan. The Philippines is also currently negotiating a Visiting Forces Agreement with France and is in talks with Paris and Berlin on the possibility of joint exercises in the future.
The Philippines most urgently requires enhanced capabilities in maritime domain awareness, improved satellite access, and upgraded ship equipment. Strengthening over-the-horizon surveillance, as well as expanding its fleet of vessels and vehicles, is essential for ensuring effective situational awareness and operational readiness. Europeans are viewed as natural partners in supporting the country’s capacity-building efforts.
Japan: Joint Development and Exercises
For Japan, the strategic stakes for cooperation with Europe are also rising. Russia’s war against Ukraine and the deepening military cooperation between Russia, China, and North Korea point toward an increased level of interconnectedness between the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific theaters. Already in 2022, then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida warned that “Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow.”
Another grave concern for Japan is the unpredictability of the Trump administration and therefore the credibility of Tokyo’s defense alliance with the US. While Europeans are ramping up their defense industries to become less dependent on the US as a security provider, there is a realization in Japan that there is no "Plan B,” and that self-defense without the US is impossible.
Adding to this grim picture is the recent downturn of relations with China over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on how a Taiwan contingency would constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan—one that might trigger a response of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. The strong retaliatory actions taken by Beijing in response to Takaichi’s statement fit into the picture of an emboldened China that is increasingly capable and willing to be tougher on its perceived adversaries.
Japan is therefore seeking to increase synergies with European countries and aims to increase the standardization and interoperability of the respective militaries. The European Union is seen as an important partner in capacity-building, for economic security discussions, and in the cyber and space domains.
Japan’s cooperation with individual countries rests on two pillars: first, equipment cooperation, and second, joint exercises. For the first, the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a trilateral initiative for the joint development of a sixth-generation stealth fighter jet led by Japan, Italy, and the United Kingdom, is a successful example and could serve as a precedent for further joint initiatives.
Regarding the second pillar, there have been joint exercises between Japan and European countries for some time. In August 2025, the UK Aircraft Carrier Strike Group visited Japan and held a series of joint exercises, involving F-35 fighter jets and enhancing the interoperability with the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Germany and Japan also held their first joint air exercises in 2024 as part of the German Indo-Pacific deployment. To consolidate these efforts, regular visits by European armed forces to the Indo-Pacific are a very welcome sight in Japan.
Growing Closer
South Korea, the Philippines, and Japan are all closely monitoring European security. While they share many of the challenges that European countries are grappling with, and the two theaters are growing ever closer together, opportunities for deepening defense ties are opening.
Europe is viewed as an important export market for defense manufacturers, a partner for joint development and exercises, and a valued provider of equipment and capacity-building. For European countries and the EU, this opens up new opportunities to diversify their own defense partnerships. As the Europeans are trying to become less dependent on the US and ramp up production at home, Indo-Pacific countries present themselves as natural cooperation partners.
Hanna Gers is a project officer at the German Council on Foreign Relations’ (DGAP) Center for Security and Defense.
