On September 16, 2021, Ambassador (p) Gheorghe Savuică, President and Founder of The Romanian Institute for Europe-Asia Studies (IRSEA), virtually delivered a key-note speech themed “Regional Cooperation and Opportunities for Pakistan-Romania Academic Connectivity” in Islamabad, Pakistan.
The prominent event, titled “Significance of Regional Connectivity for Shared Prosperity: Opportunities and Prospects”, was organised by the Center for Global and Strategic Studies (CGSS), a partner of IRSEA, in Pakistan and hosted by Bahria University. The conference reunited multiple prominent ambassadors, academics and senior professionals from Romania, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Belarus.
Ambassador Savuică’s remarks also constituted the first embodiment of the recent Memorandum of Understanding between IRSEA and CGSS, with multiple co-hosted events expected to be jointly organised in the future. In August 2021, with the gracious assistance of H.E. Dr. Zafar Iqbal, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to Romania, IRSEA and CGSS signed an agreement, on which occasion the senior leadership of the two institutions met and discussed concrete and practical avenues of cooperation.
In his key-note speech, President Savuica stressed on the importance of academic cooperation at regional level, showcasing the excellent partnership between Romania and Pakistan at the level of Asia-Europe Meeting. IRSEA’s President stressed that Romania-Pakistan academic and think-tank cooperation remains a priority for IRSEA, showcasing the numerous partnerships with Pakistani universities and research institutes as well as the multiple IRSEA honorary memberships awarded to Ambassadors and outstading academic figures of Pakistan.
Among the achievements of the Romania-Pakistan academic cooperation, Ambassador Savuica mentioned the constant flow of exchange students between the two countries, some of them having received scholarships on behalf of the Romanian government, as well as the multiple agreements under negotiation and consideration in education, culture and sport. One of the best illustrations of the excellent bilateral academic cooperation between the two countries, the agreement between Politehnica University of Bucharest and Comsats University, Islamabad, has already produced valuable know-how flows in both countries.
IRSEA’s President and Founder showcased the institution’s full availability to participate in joint research projects and other academic events with universities and think-tanks in Pakistan, as well as to act as a mediator for Pakistani universities in order to provide a better outreach among the Romanian academic institutions.
President Savuica’s argument was warmly applauded by the audience. All participants agreed with the capital importance of academic connectivity, as pillar of a more robust interaction between Europe and Asia.
One of Romania's longest serving career diplomats, former Head of Mission in several European and Asian countries as well as former Ambassador to Indonesia and Pakistan, Ambassador (p) Gheorghe Savuica has accumulated over four decades of diplomatic experience. Specialist on Southeast Asia, certified speaker of Bahasa Indonesia and fluent speaker of English and Russian, Ambassador (p) Savuica is a graduate of Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Founded by Ambassador (p) Savuica in 2008, IRSEA is Romania’s first independent, autonomous, not-for-profit Romanian think-tank to focus on raising awareness on Europe-Asia relations and Area Studies. Besides a consistent track of international cooperation with similar institutions in Europe, South and Southeast Asia, the Romanian think-tank has designed and developed several inclusive dialogue platforms, such as IRSEA Distinguished Speakers, IRSEA Roundtable, IRSEA Diplomatic Training Programme, as well as research programmes and weekly foreign policy briefings. Attaching a paramount importance to mutual respect, understanding and cooperation, IRSEA is the only Romanian member of the European Alliance for Asian Studies (EAAS).
CGSS is a public policy institution with a mission to help improve policy and decision-making through analysis and research. Its research focuses on all subjects of relevance, such as Geo-strategic affairs, regional cooperation, National Security Strategy, International Affairs, Global Security Environment, Climate Change, Food Security, counter-terrorism, energy, justice, national/international security affairs and Academia. CGSS is a leading think-tank working on Belt & Road Initiative (BRI), Eurasian connectivity and regional cooperation platforms, including Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Its empirical research and analysis helps the government of Pakistan, organizations and communities.