MERICS China Podcast

With growing geopolitical tensions, economic relations with China are increasingly challenging. The term “economic coercion” is heard more often recently in connection with EU-China relations, as China relies on economic pressure to push for strategic goals. A prominent example of this is China’s souring relations with Lithuania over the renaming of the Taiwan representative office, with companies operating in Lithuania caught in Beijing’s crosshairs. In this podcast, MERICS Analysts Aya Adachi and Alexander Brown discuss how China’s utilization of economic pressure is changing and describe the risks for companies with business in China. Read their new Monitor “Fasten your seatbelts: How to manage China’s economic coercion” on the topic here. 

Various crisis scenarios - above all Russia's war in Ukraine - are reinforcing the impression that the world is moving toward a new formation of blocs. At the same time, Beijing seeks to use its growing global power and influence to shape the global order in its favor. How do countries in the Global South that cannot be so clearly classified to one bloc or the other view China's role in the changing international power structure and US-China competition? In this podcast, MERICS Director Communications and Publications Claudia Wessling discusses the latest MERICS Paper on China "Beyond blocs: Global views on China and US-China relations" with MERICS experts Helena Legarda and Jacob Gunter. They compiled contributions by authors representing Bangladesh, Chile, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Turkey to describe those countries’ perspectives on China and US-China competition. 

Trotz Zensur und Kontrolle gibt es immer noch ein breites Spektrum an Meinungen in China. Wo liegen die Grenzen des Sagbaren, und wie verschieben sie sich? Was erlaubt die Regierung, und wann schreitet sie ein? In welchem Verhältnis stehen die Äußerungen von Experten, Meinungsführern und Netzbürgern gegenüber offiziellen Positionen? Und: Können öffentliche Debatten politische Veränderungen bewirken? Mit diesen Fragen befasst sich das Projekt China Spektrum, eine Kooperation von MERICS und dem China-Institut der Universität Trier. Gefördert wird das Projekt durch die Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit. 

In dieser Folge des MERICS China Podcasts hören Sie die Projektleiterinnen Kristin Shi-Kupfer, Professorin für Sinologie an der Universität Trier mit Schwerpunkt Digitales China, und Katja Drinhausen, Leiterin des Programms Innenpolitik und Gesellschaft am MERICS. Die beiden geben im Gespräch mit Claudia Wessling, Leiterin Kommunikation und Publikationen am MERICS, Einblick in die gerade erschienene erste Analyse des Projekts. Darin geht es um Debatten zum Krieg in der Ukraine, Kontroversen rund um den Lockdown in Shanghai, Frauenrechte und das staatliche Vorgehen gegen IT-Unternehmen. 

Mehr zum Thema:

• Projektwebsite: www.merics.org/de/china-spektrum
• China Spektrum Report: „Debatten jenseits der offiziellen Regierungslinie“: https://merics.org/de/debatten-jenseits-der-offiziellen-regierungslinie

China’s relations with the EU have become more difficult recently: In 2019, the Strategic Outlook of the EU Commission for the first time described China as a partner, a competitor and a systemic rival. This definition still holds today, and it is increasingly challenging to navigate in times of deepening rifts between global players. How should policymakers deal with a China that is ruled authoritarian, but that also offers economic opportunities and is needed for collaboration in the fight against climate change? In this podcast, French economist Sébastien Jean (CNAM) and MERICS Executive Director Mikko Huotari discuss options for an EU economic strategy vis-à-vis China with our host Claudia Wessling, Director Communications and Publications.

Sébastien Jean and Mikko Huotari have just published a note for the the French Council of Economic Analysis (CAE): “Bolstering Europe’s Economic Strategy vis-à-vis China”. You can read and download it here.

Green hydrogen is an important component of China’s path towards reaching carbon neutrality by 2060. While 80 percent of Chinese hydrogen is still produced using coal or gas with high CO2 emissions, a surge in technology development and large-scale projects led by local governments and companies are paving the way for a rapid expansion of the green hydrogen industry.

In this episode of the MERICS China Podcast, Alexander Brown and Nis Grünberg give an outlook on China’s hydrogen industry and highlight how policy support and domestic R&D are closing the gap with European technology leaders. You can read their report “China’s nascent green hydrogen sector: How policy, research and business are forging a new industry” online here. Questions were asked by Communications Manager Johannes Heller-John.

China is experiencing turbulent times: Covid-19 lockdowns in many cities and provinces have sent the Chinese economy into a dramatic decline, censors are having a difficult time keeping the Chinese internet free from statements of public discontent and rumors about political frictions. And as the war in Ukraine rages on, the Chinese leadership's course of alignment with Moscow is putting a strain on relations with Europe and the US. Beijing is confronted with unprecedented uncertainties. 

Do these factors merge to form a perfect storm that challenges the system’s resilience? MERICS Executive Director Mikko Huotari and Lead Analysts Nis Grünberg and Helena Legarda discussed this question at a MERICS event on May 31, which was moderated by MERICS Director External Relations Bernhard Bartsch. 

Today we bring you a recording of that event. A video version that also includes the slides accompanying the presentations can be found on our YouTube page. 

The close relationship between Russia and China, which has not withered in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, has turned a spotlight on the simmering territorial conflict between China and Taiwan. But how much, if at all, does the Russian invasion of Ukraine impact cross-strait relations, and what does it mean for the prospect of a Chinese invasion of the island nation?

To answer these and other questions we are joined by Sheryn Lee, a senior lecturer at the Swedish Defence University and an expert on strategic concepts and the foreign and defense policies of Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific nations. Questions were asked by Johannes Heller-John.

Rail freight between China and Europe is probably the main symbol of the Belt and Road Initiative for many in Europe. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, however, the steady flow of trains and goods has been disrupted. In this episode will look the impacts of the war in Ukraine on the BRI, how China is changing and adapting the BRI, and what that means for decision makers in Europe.

We are joined by Francesca Ghiretti and Jacob Mardell, Analyst and Research Fellow at MERICS respectively. They are co-authors of the latest MERICS Global China Inc. Tracker that featured the effects of the war in Ukraine prominently. Questions were asked by Johannes Heller-John, Communications Manager at MERICS. 

On May 8, John Lee was elected as Hong Kong's next leader with over 99 percent of the votes cast by a largely pro-Beijing election committee. In his victory speech he claimed he wanted to start a new chapter and build a Hong Kong that is “caring, open and vibrant, full of opportunities and harmony." But what does the victory of this former police officer, who has the endorsement of Beijing and is described as an emotionless machine by critics, really mean for Hong Kong?

To answer this and other questions, we are joined by Eric Yan-ho Lai, Hong Kong Law Fellow at the Center for Asian Law of Georgetown University in Washington, and Valarie Tan, a researcher at MERICS focusing on domestic politics, society and media in China. Questions asked by Claudia Wessling, Director Communications and Publications at MERICS.

Digital transformation is a top priority of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan. Having built a solid foundation for its digital economy, Beijing wants to reach the next phase: integrate digital technologies with the real economy, society and government functions to drive economic upgrading and modernize the Chinese Communist Party’s governance capabilities. Beijing’s vision, however, does not stop at home: it is global and builds on a decades-long strategic approach toward internet infrastructure in the Global South. 

Rebecca Arcesati, Analyst at MERICS focusing on China’s digital and technology policies, lays out the CCP’s vision for digital transformation and e-government, its promotion of this vision in the Global South and the implications for Europe. She recently published a MERICS Primer titled “E-government and Covid-19: Digital China goes global”. Questions were asked by Johannes Heller-John.