The bear and the EU-China-US triangle: Transatlantic and Russian influences on EU’s “pivot to Asia”
This article argues that in the case of the EU’s efforts to undertake a “Pivot to Asia”, added explanatory salience can be achieved by recognising firstly the importance of the transatlantic factor and the US’ own rebalance policies. Secondly, based on a model where the USA is regarded as a significant variable in the EU-China relationship, one may more saliently discern the influence of Russia by assessing its impact on the triangular EU-China-US relationship, both directly and indirectly. Addressing these issues in European policymaking, the article will be constituted of two main parts. In the first section, the triangular nature of European foreign policies towards China is introduced, addressing the transatlantic factor in EU-China relations. Based on research on the European policy debates on EU’s Asia policies and the American Pivot to Asia, the section will illustrate the degree to which EU policy initiatives are conceived as playing out on a range from cooperation to competition with the US’ rebalance initiatives. In the second section, the chapter will proceed to investigate a factor that is affecting, although to different degrees, all three corners of the triangular political context in which European China policies are being shaped, namely the effects of recent Russian actions in the Eurasian theatre. The analysis demonstrates how European policymakers struggle to define their place in the EU-China-US triangle. The dynamics of the ongoing Asian power shift highlights the dilemmas for the European continent, as it seeks to balance its relations in a shifting geopolitical landscape.
The Chinese story: Historical narratives as a tool in China’s Africa policy
The rise of China as a key actor on the African continent not only challenges the Western dominance in economic and political terms, Beijing is increasingly also offering a challenge on a different level, by contesting the Eurocentric history that has underpinned the West’s policies towards African countries throughout the modern era. In order to bolster the Sino-African relationship, this article argues that Beijing is propagating towards African publics a range of historical narratives about African history and the Sino-African relationship. Developing and testing a theoretical framework for analysing these historical narratives, the research finds that this Chinese history of Africa represents China’s recent actions on the African continent as incarnations of a long historical tradition of friendship and anti-colonial support, thus serving the role of legitimizing Chinese policies as well as delegitimizing Western powers’ economic and political strategies.
Jubileumsseminaret på nordområdesenteret
I samband med 10-årsjubileet til Nordområdesenteret (NOS) ved Handelshøgskolen Nord universitet har NUPI og NOS gleda av å invitere til eit halvdagsseminar for å drøfte korleis Noreg kan realisere verdiskapingspotensialet i nordområda.
Væpna gruppers skattekollekt i DR Kongo
NUPI har gleda av å invitere Kasper Hoffmann på besøk den 4. april. Hoffmann skal snakke om væpna gruppers skattleggingspraksis i det austlege Kongo, og argumentere for korleis desse gruppene bruker skatt til å etablere legitimiteten sin som substitutt for offentlege styresmakter i det austlege DR Kongo.
China's Cyber Sovereignty
This policy brief analyses China’s ambitions for imposing and strengthening the concept of cyber sovereignty in international negotiations on topics related to cybersecurity and Internet governance (IG). The presentation proceeds through four interconnected steps: 1. brief introduction and background to the Chinese ‘cyber sovereignty’ concept. 2. China’s role in defining, developing, and promoting this concept in international politics. 3. international responses to the Chinese use of the concept of cyber sovereignty, and how this should be seen in conjunction with current trends in Chinese foreign-policy strategies. 4. the use of cyber sovereignty in diplomacy, and how China uses this concept to counter Western dominance in cyberspace. Thus, the policy brief offers a brief examination of how the Chinese idea of state sovereignty in cyberspace influences how China positions itself in international negotiations with regard to issues such as security, economy and trade, and soft power (diplomacy/governance).
Preventing Violent Conflict
NUPI skal analysere hvordan forholdet mellom eksterne aktører og lokale politiske aktører påvirker konflikt forebygging....
SkattJakten fortsetter
Skattjakt-perioden forlenges og går nå over i SkattJakt II. I den nye perioden utvides også nettverket, og for SkattJakt II har vi fått med oss Tax Justice Network Norge (TJN-Norge) på laget. Fremover skal nettverket samarbeide om flere spennende arrangementer.