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EU public diplomacy in Asia: a case study of the EU Center in Taiwan

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Abstract

Since 2004, the EU has created 11 EU centers and two center-modeled programs in East Asia as an integral part of its public diplomacy in order to “promote the study, understanding, and support of the EU and its policies.” All of these centers were jointly established by the EU and local universities, and more than 50 % of their funding is offered by the EU institutions. Among these centers and programs, the EU Center in Taiwan (EUTW) distinguishes itself from the others in two ways. On one hand, similar to the EU Center in Singapore, it acts as a national center rather than a university center. On the other hand, it was jointly inaugurated by a consortium of seven universities rather than one or two universities across the island. Therefore, this paper aims to evaluate the EU public diplomacy in Asia with the help of soft power theory and an in-depth case study of the EUTW. I will firstly review the development of the EU Studies and EU-related communities in Taiwan before the EUTW was formally inaugurated in May 2009. In the second part, I will present an in-depth analysis of the structure and functioning of the EUTW in terms of EU public diplomacy on the island. In the third part, the work of EUTW in the promotion of study, understanding, and even support of the EU and its policies will be evaluated with help of an institutionalist framework. In the end, I will give a balance sheet of the EUTW in terms of EU public diplomacy before drawing into some conclusions.

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Notes

  1. There are now 37 EU centers and similar programs in the world, of which 15 EU centers and two programs are located in Asia-Pacific. European External Action Service, EU Centres World Meeting Networking Conference Centre Profile, Brussels, 22–24 October 2012, p. 3.

  2. Ian Manners and Richard Whitman, “Normative Power and the Future of EU Public Diplomacy”, in Melissen Jan and Cross Mai’a K. Davis eds., European Public Diplomacy: Soft Power at Work, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, pp. 184.

  3. Public Diplomacy in a Changing World. The Annals of American Political and Social Science, 616 (1), March 2008. Geoffrey Cowan and Amelia Arsenault, “Moving from Monologue to Collaboration: The Three layers of Public Diplomacy”, pp. 10-30; Nicolas J. Cull, “Public Diplomacy: Taxonomies and Histories”, pp. 31–54; Eytan Gilboa, “Search for a Theory of Public Diplomacy”, pp. 55–77; Joseph Nye Jr., “Public Diplomacy and Soft Power”, pp. 94–109; Emist Wilson III, “Hard Power, Soft Power and Smart Power”, pp. 110–124; and Yiwei Wang, “Public Diplomacy and Rise of Chinese Soft Power”, pp. 257–273.

  4. Joseph Nye Jr., op. cit.

  5. Ian Manners and Richard Whitman, “Normative Power and the Future of EU Public Diplomacy”, in Melissen Jan and Cross Mai’a K. Davis eds., European Public Diplomacy: Soft Power at Work, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, pp. 184.

  6. Article 2 of TEU: “The Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. These values are common to the member states in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity, and equality between women and men prevail.”

  7. The most frequently quoted list is in Table 2 of Ian Manner, “Normative Power Europe: A Contradiction in Terms?”, Journal of Common Market Studies, 40(2), 2002, p. 243.

  8. For example, Bertrand Fort and Douglas Webber eds., Regional Integration East Asia and Europe: Convergence or Divergence, London; New York: Routledge, 2006; Mario Telo ed., European Union and New Regionalism, 3rd ed., Surrey, UK; Burlington, VT, US: Ashgate, 2014.

  9. Interview with Kris Wood, Director of British Trade and Culture Office in Taipei, on 16 July 2014.

  10. For example, in 2013, out of 31,010 Taiwanese students studying abroad, 14,563 (47 %) were in the USA while 6671 (22 %) were in the EU. ROC Ministry of Education, Statistics of Students Studying Abroad. www.moe.gov.tw/userfiles, retrieved on 3 April 2015.

  11. EU Council Secretariat: Background EU Monitoring Mission in Aceh (Indonesia) (September 2005–December 2006), ACEH/07 15 December 2006.

  12. Simon Duke, “The European External Action Service and Public Diplomacy”, Melissen Jan and Cross Mai’a K. Davis eds., European Public Diplomacy: Soft Power at Work, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, pp. 124–126.

  13. Ian Manners and Richard Whitman, op. cit., pp. 189–195.

  14. Peter A. Hall and Rosemary C. R. Taylor, “Political Science and the Three New Institutionalisms”, Political Studies 44(5), 1996, p. 939.

  15. Brigid Laffan, “The European Union Polity: a Union of Regultive, Normative and Cognitive Pillars”, Journal of European Public Policy, 8(5), 2001, pp. 709–727.

  16. With reference to Article 4: Areas of cooperation, the Council Regulation (EC) No. 1934/2006 of 21 December 2006.

  17. “Transatlantic Declaration” in November 1990.

  18. Ibid.

  19. “New Transatlantic Agenda” in December 1995.

  20. Council Regulation (EC) No. 382/2001 of 26 February 2001.

  21. Council Regulation (EC) No. 1934/2006 of 21 December 2006

  22. Interview with Fédéric Laplanche, director of EETO, on 30 May 2014.

  23. Interview with Ying-Mau Kao, former Taiwan Representative to the EU, on 24 May 2014.

  24. Council Regulation (EC) No. 1934/2006 of 21 December 2006

  25. Central News Agency, 19 January 2008.

  26. Agreement establishing the consortium for application for the EU project establishing an EU Centre in Taiwan on 2 September 2008.

  27. Grant Agreement for the European Union Centre in Taiwan between European Commission and National Taiwan University. Agreement Number SI2.517123.

  28. Grant Agreement for an Action between European Commission and National Taiwan University. Agreement Number SI2.638984.

  29. History of National Contact Point Taiwan. http://www.ncp.tw/en/index.php?id=fa73c451a95d8458d13d12aea343acba (retrieved on 31 March 2015)

  30. Statue establishing the European Union Center in Taiwan, adopted by the administrative council of National Taiwan University on 13 January 2009.

  31. Interview with Frédéric Laplance, director of EETO, on 30 May 2014.

  32. Annex 1 Descript of the Action EU Center in Taiwan, Grant Agreement for the European Union Center in Taiwan between European Commission and National Taiwan University, p. 4.

  33. Statute establishing the European Studies Association Taiwan, article 4.

  34. Statute establishing the Friends of Europe in Taiwan, article 4.

  35. Collaboration Agreement between Pathéon-Assas Paris II University and National Taiwan University for the Creation of a Dual Degree Student Exchange Programme.

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  1. National Taiwan University, Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China

    Hungdah Su

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Correspondence to Hungdah Su.

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Su, H. EU public diplomacy in Asia: a case study of the EU Center in Taiwan. Asia Eur J 14, 337–351 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10308-016-0453-2

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