China’s EU Sanctions Are the Latest Proof: Beijing Doesn’t Understand Democracies

This week, in an act of tit-for-tat after the European Union imposed sanctions on Chinese officials involved in Xinjiang human rights abuses, China imposed its own sanctions on five Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), three members of national parliaments, two EU committees, and a number of European think tanks and experts on China. [...]

Romania is closing the door to public tenders for Chinese companies

Last week, the Romanian government announced that it intends to ban Chinese companies from participating in public infrastructure tenders, which was coincidentally followed by a wave of restrictions for Chinese companies in Central and Eastern Europe. The Czech Republic also aims to ban CGN from taking part in the public tender to build the [...]

By | 9 February 2021|Categories: Articles|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

Testimony before the European Parliament Committee on International Trade (INTA) on the Belt and Road Initiative and China-EU relations

On November 9, the Committee on International Trade of the European Parliament organized a hearing on EU-China Trade and Investment Relations in a post-covid world. Andreea Brînză, Vice President of RISAP, was one of the European experts invited to testify at this hearing. In her testimony, Andreea presented an overview of China’s Belt and [...]

An ambitious European China strategy needs a vision, new tools and more resources

In designing a coherent, goal-driven, long-term China strategy, Europe should be ambitious, even if achieving its goals will be difficult. This will require vision, but also new tools and resources, which Europe now lacks. This need will in itself complicate things for European governments on the short term, but on the long run it [...]

By | 14 September 2020|Categories: Articles|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

Designing an ambitious and coherent European China strategy without full unity

The initial plan for the Leipzig Summit between China and the European Union featured all the heads of state or government of the 27 EU member states meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The goal of this 27+1 format was to project an image of unity among all EU member states, speaking to China [...]

There can be no European China strategy without an end goal

From Paris to Riga, there are calls for a new European approach towards China. All over Europe, there is pressure for national governments and the European Union to adopt a more robust and assertive China policy. The COVID-19 pandemic and concerns over supply chain security and economic dependency on China have accelerated this trend, as [...]

By | 14 September 2020|Categories: Articles|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

Europe needs a coherent, goal-driven, long-term China strategy

On Monday, Chancellor Angela Merkel, on behalf of the German Presidency of the Council of the European Union, together with the Presidents of the European Commission and the European Council, will have a virtual summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Before this videoconference, European officials and leaders engaged and discussed on the topic of [...]

By | 14 September 2020|Categories: Articles|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

China Doesn’t Understand Europe, and It Shows

Some years ago, both President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang showed a fondness for referencing popular American television shows including “Game of Thrones” and “House of Cards.” While they seen to display a firm grasp on Western pop culture, they seem to lack a thorough understanding of European politics. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang [...]

Without rule of law, China risks becoming the lonely tech superpower

Huawei has steadily emerged as a 5G pioneer, showing how a Chinese company can become a global heavyweight. Yet it has also become a different kind of pioneer: the first victim of a foreign blockade of Chinese technology companies, which could upend Beijing’s plans to become a global tech leader. The argument underpinning [...]

Central and Eastern Europe is not in bed with China

If you ask three experts from the United States, China, and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) about China-CEE relations, you will receive three different answers. While the Chinese might say that relations are very good and the American might say that the Central and Eastern Europe region is in bed with China, the [...]