ASEF Day marks the creation of the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), but its significance goes well beyond an institutional anniversary. It recalls a moment when Asia and Europe made a conscious decision to invest in sustained dialogue, at a time when globalisation was accelerating.
Established in 1997 as the only permanent institution of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), ASEF works within and outside formal settings to foster mutual understanding. Its role is to turn high-level engagement into long-term exchange, connecting policymakers, officials, civil society, cultural actors, journalists and young leaders across both regions.
Observed each year, on 15 February, ASEF day is an opportunity to pause and reflect on why this approach still matters. In a world increasingly marked by fragmentation, the need for platforms that encourage mutual understanding and cooperation has only grown.
Today, ASEF continues to serve as a unique cross-cultural and multilateral space for people-to-people connection, where ideas can be shared, partnerships formed and perspectives exchanged among the nations of Asia and Europe, based on mutual respect.
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