Paper Titles & Abstracts

The first months following China's leadership handover in November 2012 have brought little change to Sino-European relations. Trade and investment relations, a mainstay of the relationship over past decades, have continued to solidify despite the financial crisis in Europe. Instead, they have led to an increased importance of China as a market and a source of inward investment. This paper delves deeper into one aspect of this complex and varied relationship, the current WTO disputes brought by the EU and China against one other in photovoltaic panels, and telecommunications equipment. The paper firsts positions these against the context of other EU-China disputes and their broader economic relationship. It then uses materials from interviews with officials and business representatives, media, and official documents to process-trace the decision to interpose these disputes. Focusing on the underlying interests behind these disputes, the paper relates to the literature on interests and lobbying in trade policy, as well as Sino-European economic relations. The paper shows that the divergent interests over time cause fractures within the EU that weaken its position vis-à-vis China. It also suggests avenues for greater cooperation to further achieve EU and Chinese 'green economy' efforts, which the current disputes risk undermining.