The European Union and China: The Need for a More Politicised Relationship

Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies, Volume 3, Issue 3, pages 412-419, September 2016

Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University, 2016

8 Pages Posted: 13 Oct 2016

See all articles by Kerry Brown

Kerry Brown

King’s College London

Sam Beatson

King’s College London

Date Written: September 9, 2016

Abstract

China and the European Union (EU) in 2016 have one of the largest economic relationships to the world, with a network of strategic dialogues covering areas from environment to agriculture. Despite this, their relationship is a hard one to encapsulate. President Xi Jinping's idea of 'civilisational' partnership seem abstract, but at least opens up the possibility of the EU conceptualizing its relationship with China as not solely transactional, but something more political. This paper argues that conferring Market Economy Status on China will be a key issue in marking this transition between the EU seeing its link with China solely in economic terms, and looking for a stronger political dimension. The conclusion is that both sides can no longer pretend they are simply trade blocks interacting with each other.

Suggested Citation

Brown, Kerry and Beatson, Sam, The European Union and China: The Need for a More Politicised Relationship (September 9, 2016). Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies, Volume 3, Issue 3, pages 412-419, September 2016, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University, 2016, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2851685

Kerry Brown (Contact Author)

King’s College London ( email )

Strand
London, England WC2R 2LS
United Kingdom

Sam Beatson

King’s College London ( email )

Strand
London, England WC2R 2LS
United Kingdom

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