Abstract
This chapter deals with relations between the EU and China, in the light both of the US–China trade war, and concerns related to Chinese state surveillance, the 5G technology rollout and Huawei’s UK leak and US embargo. Both the EU and China are to build a viable trade partnership, but this needs to be dealt with in the light of controversies surrounding the behaviour of the Chinese state, with regard to everything from human rights to intellectual property theft—as well as the escalating trade tariff wars initiated by President Trump. Crucially, as argued in this chapter, how the EU aligns in this conflict will determine its relationship with both powers. Furthermore, the strain on the World Trade Organization will only increase if the US–China trade war intensifies. American tariffs and restrictions on technology exports to China—combined with Chinese retaliation—raise the prospect that the world is moving towards a trading system built around rival blocs.
This chapter is co-authored between John Theodore and Jonathan Theodore
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Notes
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Defined as promoting sectors such as advanced information technology industry, machinery and robotics, aerospace and aeronautic equipment, marine engineering equipment and high tech ships, advanced rail transport equipment, energy-saving vehicles and renewable energy, agricultural machinery and equipment, new materials, biopharma and high-performance medical products. See 中国制造 2025 (Made in China 2025), State Council, May 8, 2015.
- 2.
European Commission, “EU-China—A Strategic Outlook,” March 12, 2009, at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/communication-eu-china-a-strategic-outlook.pdf.
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EU-China Strategic Outlook European Commission report 12 March 2019.
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This is all in marked contrast to the EU’s relations with Russia. Europe has been dominated by Russia’s occupation of the Crimea—for which the EU maintains a policy of economic sanctions—also Russia’s part in fuelling the crisis in the Ukraine, and its military sabre rattling alarming the EU ‘Visegrad’ and Baltic states.
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Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) or One Belt One Road (OBOR), the brainchild of Chinese President Xi Jinping part of an ambitious plan promoting China as a global leader for economic development.
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Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council—‘Elements for a new EU strategy on China’, JOIN (2016) 30, 22 June 2016, and Council Conclusions on EU Strategy on China of 18 July 2016.
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The China of Deng Xiaoping (China’s leader between 1978 and 1989) was linked to the opening up of China to economic reforms under the slogan of “One Country, Two Systems”.
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1 October 2016, the RMB officially received reserve currency status with a 10.92% weighting in the IMFs Special Drawing Rights. The Chinese RMB was finally, included in the IMF’s basket of reserve currencies in December 2015.
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www.crs.gov. congressional Research service 10 January 2019 on China’s Status as a Nonmarket Economy.
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The European Union and the Eurozone Under Stress Palgrave 2017.
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Euractiv.com, 22 March 2019.
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Greece joined the “16+1” group of eastern European countries to join the Belt and Road Initiative with China.
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https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/communication-eu-china-a-strategic-outlook.pdf. Bold has been added to the last line for emphasis.
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China-US rivalry in the South China seas.
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For Greece, a member of NATO, an investment of such strategic importance does raise issues of dependency national security and sovereignty but one that the Greek government can balance off against the economic benefits it brings to its crisis-ridden economy.
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Donald Trump and US officials indicated that no sector of the UK economy (including the NHS) can be excluded.
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Daily Telegraph, Saturday 22 June 2019.
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Greece joined the “16+1” group of eastern European countries looking to deepen ties with Beijing.
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Ibid.
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Brookings Institution Press, 17 May 2016.
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The UK Parliament rejected the Withdrawal Agreement 3× delaying Brexit until 29 October 2019.
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- 52.
1 October 2016, the RMB officially received reserve currency status with a 10.92% weighting in the IMFs Special Drawing Rights. The Chinese RMB was finally, included in the IMF’s basket of reserve currencies in December 2015.
- 53.
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Theodore, J. (2019). The EU, China and Their Changing Relations. In: Survival of the European (Dis) Union. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31214-5_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31214-5_6
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