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Rising China: EU Perspectives and
Responses |
A “Rising China” has been a major,
but under-analyzed development in the international system.
Speculating about what a rival Chinese superpower means for
the international order has become common practice. The European
Union is no exception in this: China-related issues (such as
trade, human rights, development policy and the export of military
equipment) have increasingly moved up the EU’s agenda,
and in the last decade the EU has pushed hard for an intensification
and improvement in Sino-European relations. Economic factors
have driven this increased awareness, although lately the EU
has attempted to give the dialogue a greater political component.
The current recession might have its repercussions in this
process, as both the EU and China see economic contraction
in the short term and potentially into the medium term as well,
but ultimately these economic giants will remain poaching on
each other’s territory.
This brief focuses on the economic and political consequences
of the shifting dynamic between the EU and China. First, it
touches upon the impact of Chinese export-led growth on EU
industries. Second, it focuses on the consequences of the growth
of a Chinese middle class and of the Chinese push into former
European protectorates in Africa. Third, it assesses developments
in EU policy towards China and how these differ from the American
response to China’s challenge to its hegemonic power.
- Impact on EU Industries: Loosing the Competition
- Trade and Human Rights
- A Growing Chinese Middle Class
- China in Africa
- EU Policy Development Towards China
- Conclusion
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