Korovnikova Natalia Alexandrovna – Ph.D. in Political Sciences, Leading Researcher, INION RAS
The formation of a new world order inevitably forces key geopolitical players to review and adapt their foreign policy strategies as well as trade and economic models to newly emerging challenges and conditions. In this regard, the experience of the European Union, the task of which is to gain full-fledged global subjectivity, is quite interesting. The focus on confrontation with the Russian Federation, especially against the backdrop of the Special Military Operation (SMO), objectively limits the EU’s ability to to take strong and energetic action in other areas. The Indo-Pacific region (IPR) and specifically the factor of competition between China and the United States are of particular importance for the EU. The European Union is taking into account the factors of China’s positive attitude towards Russia in matters of SMO, as well as the strengthening of the foreign policy and economic influence of the PRC not only among the countries of the Global South, but also in Europe (in particular, in the Balkans). The entropy of the international context, on the one hand, and the ambiguity of relations between the EU and China, on the other, necessitate a comprehensive, multi-sectoral study of their dialogue. In particular, based on the analysis of the EU «Strategic Compass» and a number of other documents, the paper shows the EU’s foreign policy goals in the ITR, while noting the absence of the PRC among the regional partners of the European Union. It is indicated that a unified official EU strategy towards China has not yet been formed, and bilateral relations are still built in vague terms of the «рolicy of de-risking» («cooperation», «competition», «rivalry»). The very possibility of the EU joining the process of «containing» China is explored. Although the PRC continues to be the most important trading partner of the European Union, there is a clash of their economic interests under the influence of foreign policy factors. It is concluded that in the foreseeable future, ensuring the geopolitical subjectivity of the European Union will be determined by the nature of its interaction with the PRC.
European Union, China, «Strategic Compass», Indo-Pacific region, foreign policy, military potential, trade and economic relations.
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