1 The Return of Security: Shifting Perceptions of the State(craft) in UK–China Relations
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Shaun Breslin
Abstract
In October 2015, Xi Jinping’s arrival in the UK was hailed as evidence of a new ‘Golden Era’ of UK–China relations as the UK government sought to establish itself as China’s best friend in Europe. By the end of the decade, the dominant narrative in the UK focused on the challenges and even threats that China posed for not just the UK, but the very nature of the global order itself. In truth, the preferred Golden Era narrative of the Cameron government was not as representative of the wider discourse on China as its political predominance during Cameron’s premiership made it appear, and the shift in the narrative can partly be explained by the change in personnel at the top of the governing Conservative Party. The bipartisan position on China in the US also influenced debates in the UK. Arguably most important, though, were the material changes in the nature of the UK–China economic relationship and changes in China itself, both in terms of Chinese domestic politics and Xi Jinping’s intent to push alternatives to the liberal rules-based international order.
Abstract
In October 2015, Xi Jinping’s arrival in the UK was hailed as evidence of a new ‘Golden Era’ of UK–China relations as the UK government sought to establish itself as China’s best friend in Europe. By the end of the decade, the dominant narrative in the UK focused on the challenges and even threats that China posed for not just the UK, but the very nature of the global order itself. In truth, the preferred Golden Era narrative of the Cameron government was not as representative of the wider discourse on China as its political predominance during Cameron’s premiership made it appear, and the shift in the narrative can partly be explained by the change in personnel at the top of the governing Conservative Party. The bipartisan position on China in the US also influenced debates in the UK. Arguably most important, though, were the material changes in the nature of the UK–China economic relationship and changes in China itself, both in terms of Chinese domestic politics and Xi Jinping’s intent to push alternatives to the liberal rules-based international order.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- List of Figures and Tables vii
- Notes on Contributors ix
- Preface xii
- Introduction: Narrative and Europe–China Relations 1
- The Return of Security: Shifting Perceptions of the State(craft) in UK–China Relations 17
- Clashing Narratives over Italy’s Adhesion to the Belt and Road Initiative: A Critical Discourse Analysis Approach 36
- The ‘Iron Friendship’ and the ‘Long and Winding Road’: Narrating Sino-Serbian Relations on the Borders of the EU 57
- The Unicorn, the Dragon and the Storytellers: Comparing Praxes of Narrating China in EU Foreign Policy 75
- China, Europe and Dual Circulation: Emerging Narratives of China’s New Economic Model 93
- The Politics of Human Rights between China and the EU 113
- The Narratives of Counterterrorism and the Prospects of EU–China Security Cooperation 132
- The Role of Science and Technology in UK Narratives about China: The Case of Synthetic Biology 154
- From Academic Partner to ‘Academic Threat’: German and UK Media Framing of European–Chinese Academic Cooperation since Xi Jinping Came to Power 173
- Exploring the Limits of Soft Power: Sentiments and Narratives on China in Turkish Social Media and Political Speeches of Elites 199
- Chosen Traumas: China’s Everlasting Century of Humiliation and Sino-European Relations 225
- The Weight of History: Competing Narratives in the Context of a Rising China 244
- Conclusion: Narratives and China–Europe Relations 264
- Index 273
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- List of Figures and Tables vii
- Notes on Contributors ix
- Preface xii
- Introduction: Narrative and Europe–China Relations 1
- The Return of Security: Shifting Perceptions of the State(craft) in UK–China Relations 17
- Clashing Narratives over Italy’s Adhesion to the Belt and Road Initiative: A Critical Discourse Analysis Approach 36
- The ‘Iron Friendship’ and the ‘Long and Winding Road’: Narrating Sino-Serbian Relations on the Borders of the EU 57
- The Unicorn, the Dragon and the Storytellers: Comparing Praxes of Narrating China in EU Foreign Policy 75
- China, Europe and Dual Circulation: Emerging Narratives of China’s New Economic Model 93
- The Politics of Human Rights between China and the EU 113
- The Narratives of Counterterrorism and the Prospects of EU–China Security Cooperation 132
- The Role of Science and Technology in UK Narratives about China: The Case of Synthetic Biology 154
- From Academic Partner to ‘Academic Threat’: German and UK Media Framing of European–Chinese Academic Cooperation since Xi Jinping Came to Power 173
- Exploring the Limits of Soft Power: Sentiments and Narratives on China in Turkish Social Media and Political Speeches of Elites 199
- Chosen Traumas: China’s Everlasting Century of Humiliation and Sino-European Relations 225
- The Weight of History: Competing Narratives in the Context of a Rising China 244
- Conclusion: Narratives and China–Europe Relations 264
- Index 273
