Germany’s new government was formed in December 2021, after sixteen years of Merkel’s administration. While continued Indo-Pacific engagement is required, the implementation of the regional strategy may waver under the new administration. Further, the divergence of strategic interest in the Indo-Pacific strategy among countries of the EU undermines its security dimension. This article proposes to differentiate multilateral efforts to shape a ‘rules-based international order’ in the Indo-Pacific region and military engagement in the ‘security realm’ toward the US-China great power competition. By doing so, Germany and the EU can progress in their Indo-Pacific policy and cooperation with Japan’s free and open Indo-Pacific vision and ASEAN’s Indo-Pacific outlook and make a military contribution to regional security.