Europe, China, and Hong Kong: Why new red lines will be worth the cost (Commentary)

Janka Oertel - 27 May 2020

The business relationship has long dominated Europe-China relations. But the recent developments in Hong Kong show that Beijing’s increasingly aggressive policies should force a rethink.

The End of Europe’s Chinese Dream (Commentary)

Mark Leonard - 27 May 2020

After years of pursuing closer bilateral economic ties with China, Europeans have suddenly realised that they have become dangerously dependent on Chinese trade and investment.

How to repair multilateralism after covid-19 (Commentary)

Anthony Dworkin - 22 May 2020

The China-US rivalry is harming an already-fragile international system. Europeans should seek out like-minded allies to act in its defence.

China, America, and how Europe can deal with war by economic means (Commentary)

Jonathan Hackenbroich - 13 May 2020

Great power rivalry has not abated even amid the coronavirus. To survive the economic conflict between China and the US, Europe must make its preparations now.

The crisis of a lifetime (Commentary)

George Soros | Gregor Peter Schmitz - 12 May 2020

Only one thing is certain about the post-pandemic world: there is no way back to the globalised economy that preceded it. Everything else is up for grabs, including the rise of China, the fate of the United States, and the survival of the European Union.

Serbia’s coronavirus diplomacy unmasked (Commentary)

Majda Ruge & Janka Oertel - 26 March 2020

The Serbian president has exploited the EU’s internal divisions to insult the bloc and legitimise his policies, as well as his courtship of authoritarian partners.

 

The Nordic shift: China’s uphill battle for public approval in northern Europe (Commentary)

Morten Andersen, Henrik Hiim, and Ulf Sverdrup - 18 March 2020

A recent survey shows that even the champions of free trade in Europe’s high north are reassessing their approach to Chinese investment. 

A triangle deal - How covid-19 is reshaping the global order and EU-China relations

Last year, the European Union published a strategic outlook in which it reviewed China as a partner, competitor and a strategic rival, creating a lively debate about the nature of the EU-China relations. However, this outlook was designed for a pre-corona world. How has covid-19 reshaped the EU-China relations? What changes to the global order will the pandemic bring? Who will be the main actors in the international arena? In this week’s podcast Mark Leonard welcomed Lanxin Xiang, Professor in International History and Politics at the Graduate Institute in Geneva and Director of the Centre of One And One Road Studies, who shares his insights on the changing global order, China’s attitude towards the EU and the Chinese “wolf warrior diplomacy”

This podcast was recorded on 20 May 2020.

Bookshelf:

• "John Maynard Keynes 1883-1946: Economist, Philosopher, Statesman" by Robert Skidelsky
• "The meaning of systemic rivalry: Europe and China beyond the pandemic" by Andrew Small 
• "The post-coronavirus world is already here" by Josep Borrell

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EU-China relations in times of covid-19

Covid-19 has upended life as we know it. While affecting business and politics within Europe, it also brings about a new set of questions with regard to our relationship with China. In this spiral of current events and increasing international mistrust, the Chinese leadership is trying very hard to shift the international narrative in its favour. The broader question of the future of EU-China relations predates the coronavirus crisis and has not disappeared, but becomes more urgent and existing fault lines become even more pronounced.

We discussed all these issues in a Virtual Pan-European Roundtable organized by ECFR Rome office with Janka Oertel, Director of ECFR Asia program with the participation of Mauro Petriccione, Director-General DG Climate Action and ECFR Council Member; Michele Geraci, Economist and former Economy Undersecretary and Filippo Fasulo, Director of the Italy-China research centre. The discussion was moderated by Alessandro Speciale, Head of Bloomber Rome Bureau.

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Geopolitics in the coronavirus era – who will be crowned winner?

Last week’s episode saw our experts dissecting the coronavirus’ implications for Europe. In today's episode, we’re breaking down how the crisis is unfolding in the rest of the world. From the Middle East to Russia and Asia, and all over across the Atlantic – what long-term effects could it have on these regions? And what does it mean for geopolitics, the global system and its institutions?
Our Host Mark Leonard is joined by the ECFR heads of programme Julien Barnes-Dacey, Susi Dennison, Janka Oertel & Nicu Popescu to discuss how the virus is manifesting in these regions, and the implications it carries with it – and it doesn’t look too good. For all the gloominess this podcast will create, our experts recommend turning to poetry for some soul-healing. Recommendations below!

This podcast was recorded on 25 March 2020.

Bookshelf:

• "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S.Elliot
• "Happy Everyday" by Benjamin Zephaniah
   
• "MBS: The Rise to Power of Mohammed Bin Salman" by Ben Hubbard
• "Sandworm" by Andy Greenberg
• "The Pursuit of Power" by William H. McNeill
• "Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy" by Cathy O'Neil
• "The Psychology of Pandemics. Preparing for the Next Global Outbreak of Infectious Disease" by Steven Taylor
• "The Coronavirus pandemic and the new world it is creating" by Josep Borrell

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To Huawei or not to Huawei?

Last week the European Commission published its EU Toolbox on 5G Cyber Security, with the aim of aiding the member states in evaluating the risks associated with future usage of 5G infrastructure and networks. This was a step forward given the polarising debate surrounding the role of Chinese telecommunications firms like Huawei and ZTE within a future 5G network in Europe. The decision, however, will ultimately be a national one taken by individual member states. Our Director Mark Leonard is joined by Asia Programme Director Janka Oertel and Project Director of Stiftung Neue Verantwortung Jan-Peter Kleinhans to discuss the significance and implications of the toolbox and what this might mean for the EU.

This podcast was recorded on 5 February 2020.

Bookshelf:

• "The logic of strategic assets" by Jeffrey Ding and Allan Dafoe
• "The Path to Power" by Robert Caro
• "Clash of Empires: Currencies and Power in a Multipolar World" by Charles Gave and Louis Vincent Gave
• "All the Names" by Jose Saramago

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China's 1989

Anthony Dworkin stands in for host Mark Leonard to talk about how China experienced 1989 back then and today. In some ways, it is more comparable to the changes 1968 provoked in the West, claims podcast guest and China expert Jeff Wasserstrom. Looking beyond the dreadful Tiananmen Square Massacre, how did China change after 1989 politically and socially? And can we draw a line from the protests back then to the ones in Hong Kong right now?

This podcast was recorded on 2 December 2019.

Bookshelf:

• "Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink" by Jeffrey Wasserstrom
• "Minjian: The Rise of China’s Grassroots Intellectuals" by Sebastian Veg
• Follow: Yangyang Cheng @yangyang_chen

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What is Europe's maritime security role in the South China Sea?

Le podcast de notre BCM du 24 juin « What is Europe's maritime security role in the South China Sea? » en présence de Mathieu Duchâtel, directeur du programme Asie à l’Institut Montaigne, Delphine O, ambassadrice et secrétaire générale de la Conférence mondiale de l’ONU et John Nilsson-Wright, senior fellow au programme AsiaPacific de Chatman House.

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US tariffs on Chinese exports: Can the two reach a deal?

Anthony Dworkin steps in for Mark Leonard and speaks with Janka Oertel and Sebastian Mallaby about US-China trade talks, their relationship and Europe’s role. The podcast was recorded on 30 January 2019.

Bookshelf:

Troublemakers: Silicon Valley's Coming of Age by Leslie Berlin 

The Code: Silicon Valley and the remaking of America by Margeret O’Mara 

Die Neuerfindung der Diktatur by Kai Strittmatter 

Algiers, Third World Capital: Freedom Fighters, Revolutionaries, Black Panthers by Elaine Mokhtefi 

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