German-Austrian retreat on European China politics

The German Embassy in Vienna, the office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Vienna and MERICS invited to a two-day German-Austrian hybrid retreat on European China politics on October 8-9. The small group exchange brought together high-ranking officials and representatives of the economy as well as China experts from Germany and Austria. In addition selected representatives from EU institutions and other member states were in attendance.

In three thematic sessions “Opportunities and limits of the partnership with "Post-COVID China" and a view to global challenges”, “Systemic rivalry: Chinese influence and diplomatic pressure in Europe” and “China's role as an innovation competitor and/or partner for Europe” and a dinner, the event offered an informal space to discuss matters related to China and respective national perspectives on China. Inputs from invited China experts and brief statements from selected German and Austrian representatives alongside open discussion sessions helped to expose similarities and differences regarding respective political and economic relations with China. In addition, areas for stronger cooperation were identified. Above all, there was a discussion on how Germany and Austria can further strengthen the European China policy. The retreat also gave the German EU Council Presidency the opportunity to present their thoughts on the EU's China-related priorities and compare them with Austria’s.