Think tank europe

The limits of socialization - The search for EU-China cooperation towards security challenges in Africa
09/06/2010
Author : Brussels Institute of Contemporary China Studies (BICCS - Belgium)
by Jonathan Holslag & Sara Van Hoeymissen (Eds.) - BICCS Policy Report - May 2010
 
The European Union has welcomed China’s growing presence in Africa as a potential opportunity for the region’s development. But for this potential to be translated into tangible progress, Europe wants China to assume greater responsibility in promoting long-term stability and peace. BICCS invited thirty participants from fifteen different European institutes to participate in an intensive workshop about China’s response to security challenges in Africa. The aim of this meeting was to examine the new security threats that China has been confronted with, the way China perceived these challenges and how it has responded. The participants discussed the impact of China’s policies on the interests of the European Union and how the latter could respond.

Overall, the conclusion is that Europe’s policy initiative to establish trilateral dialogue and cooperation with China in the field of African peace and security has not produced substantial results. On the one hand, the workshop noted China's continuing and in some respects deepening involvement with multilateral security initiatives in Africa and some ad hoc changes in China's non-interference policy to respond to certain non-traditional security challenges, such as humanitarian crises. However, the workshop also revealed that China still has a clear penchant for security free riding. Europe should therefore pursue a strategy that combines constructive engagement with tacit balancing.

This policy report summarizes the main findings of the workshop. It will be followed by a comprehensive report that includes the original papers of the participants. It does not necessarily represent the views of the participants’ respective institutes.

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