Convergence and divergence between the EU and China

Abstract

The EU and China, the first and third largest economies in the world, launched a strategic partnership in 2003. From the onset, this partnership had two main objectives: deepening and broadening cooperation and enhancing bilateral collaboration on a wide range of policy areas at the global level. On the 10th anniversary of the partnership, this special issue seeks to provide a comprehensive analysis of the mechanisms, the evolution and current state of EU–China relations, and the divergence and convergence between them on a number of issues. The special issue includes articles setting out the historical and institutional background behind the EU–China partnership, examining their cooperation and problems in the economic, financial, climate change and security fields as well as in relation to third parties. In this way, this special issue covers the most important fields of policy coordination and cooperation between the EU and China. Furthermore, through the examination of EU–China policy cooperation, the papers try to understand and explain how global governance works in practice and the mechanisms whereby two of the most important global actors coordinate their policies and work together. In addition, this special issue seeks to comprehend the nature of the strategic partnership between the EU and China. Forging strategic partnerships has become increasingly common among international actors. However, such partnerships are often criticised for being devoid of real content. The issue examines how the EU– China strategic partnership works as well as the problems that exist between the two partners. The special issue begins with Yongjin Zhang’s examination of the historical background behind Europe–China relations. He does so by examining the role of Matteo Ricci as a cultural agent, a knowledge broker and a practitioner of public diplomacy in fostering bilateral exchanges 400 years ago and his legacies to enriching bilateral relations in the twenty first century. Zhang argues that Ricci’s conception of culture, his wisdom about the power of knowledge and his practice of people-to-people diplomacy would inspire the EU and China in search of a viable strategic partnership. Asia Eur J (2014) 12:1–3 DOI 10.1007/s10308-014-0377-7