CHINA AND THE EUROPEAN UNION: CHALLENGES, DYNAMICS AND MULTILATERALISM IN A TRANSFORMING LANDSCAPE

In the interaction among regional powers, China’s participation has been steadily increasing, encompassing political, economic, and investment dimensions. Amidst shifting global dynamics, the European Union is increasingly pursuing strategic autonomy alongside its historic American partnership, while other major actors, including China and countries of the Global South, are also shaping evolving approaches to security and multilateral engagement. What consequences will this have for the relationship between Europe and China vis-à-vis global stakeholders such as Russia and the Ukraine, India and the Gulf or Africa?

As China remains a significant participant in the UN system and a major contributor to peacekeeping, the Global South has found increasing common ground with China in UN bodies. In this context, can joint efforts among the EU, China, and partners from the Global South strengthen the multilateral agenda and help to bridge their diverse systemic perspectives? In light of 55 years of diplomatic relations between Austria and China, we bring together perspectives from Beijing, Vienna, and Brussels to discuss current and future challenges and synergies.

The panel discussion will be followed by Break-Out-Round Tables with all the discussants and further Austrian academics and business representatives in order to provide for more detailed interaction and conversation.

Panel:
Liu Feitao, Vice President of China Institute of International Studies, Secretary General of China National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation, Senior Research Fellow
Xie Bo, research fellow of China Institute of International Studies
Thomas Eder, Research Fellow (Postdoctoral Researcher) at the Austrian Institute for International Affairs in Vienna and Lecturer at the Department of Political Science, University of Vienna
Susanne Weigelin-Schwiedrzik, Sinologist, Professor emerita at the Department of East Asian Studies, University of Vienna and corresponding member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences

Additional discussants at the Break -Out-Round Tables also include:
Yang Bowen, Department for European Studies of China Institute of International Studies
Daniel Fuchs, China-expert and author at the Humboldt-Universität Berlin
Oliver Radtke, Sinologe, Journalist, Autor, Gastprofessor an der Shenzhen Technology University 
Bu Shaohua, Deputy Director and Associate Research Fellow at the Department for European Studies in China Institute of International Studies

Moderation:
Raimund Löw, Journalist, Autor, Historiker