Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Mr. Pekka Haavisto welcomes you to a closed roundtable discussion China – Awareness and Engagement. The aim is to engage in a confidential exchange of views on China’s growing global influence and its implications for Europe and the EU. The focus will be on awareness and engagement – how to balance between responding to China’s growing global influence and engaging China in fruitful cooperation. The aim of the discussion is also to contribute to the EU’s China policy, including the upcoming summits in 2020.

All discussions will be held under the Chatham House rule.

The opening remarks will be given by Mr. Reinhard Bütikofer, Member of the European Parliament (Alliance 90/The Greens, part of the European Green Party). Mr. Bütikofer serves as the Chair of the European Parliament’s Delegation for relations with the People’s Republic of China. It is one of the Parliament’s largest delegations reflecting the fact that the EU’s relationship with China is one of its most significant political and economic relationships.

The event will be held in Helsinki, Finland on 9 March, 2020 at 16.00h – 19.00h.
Venue: The House of Estates, Snellmaninkatu 9-11, Helsinki

Host: Mr. Pekka Haavisto, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland
Co-host: Mr. Reinhard Bütikofer, Member of the European Parliament

Speakers:
Mr. Sven Biscop, Egmont – Royal Institute for International Relations
Mr. Maurice Fermont, Business Europe
Mr. François Heisbourg, Fondation pour la Recherche Strategique (FRS)
Mr. Jonathan Holslag, Free University Brussels
Mr. Mikko Huotari, MERICS
Mr. Jyrki Kallio, Finnish Institute of International Affairs
Mr. Christophe Manet, EEAS
Mr. Mikael Mattlin, University of Turku
Mr. Hans Dietmar Schweisgut, Former EU Ambassador to China
Mr. John Seaman, Institut Français des Relations Internationales (Ifri)
Mr. Teppo Turkki, Business Finland

Programme, 9 March 2020

15.30 – 16.00 Registration, coffee and snacks

16.00 – 16.05 Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Pekka Haavisto: Welcome words

16.05 – 16.15 MEP, Mr. Reinhard Bütikofer: Opening remarks
After speakers’ brief remarks, each session will end with a free roundtable discussion open to all participants.

16.15 – 17.10 China’s Evolving Foreign Policy and Global Interests
The first session discusses China’s evolving global role and its foreign policy ambitions.
François Heisbourg: China and European security
Jyrki Kallio: Ambitions and motives of Chinese foreign policy
Sven Biscop: US – China relations from the perspective of security policy
Jonathan Holslag: China’s role in the multilateral system

17.10 – 18.00 China as a Partner, Competitor and Rival
The second session aims to review China’s global influence and its implications for Europe
and discover further opportunities for EU-China cooperation.
Mikael Mattlin: China’s foreign investments
John Seaman: China’s role in the field of technical standards
Maurice Fermont: The future of European companies in China
Teppo Turkki: Opportunities for cooperation with China

18.00 – 18.55 EU–China Relations in 2020 and Beyond: Way Forward
The third session aims to produce concrete ideas for enhancing the EU’s China policy and
advancing the EU’s interests in a fruitful way.
Mikko Huotari: Strengths and weaknesses in European China policy
Hans Dietmar Schweisgut: Is the EU ambitious enough with China?
Christophe Manet: How to extract concrete results out of EU-China relations?

18.55 – 19.00 Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Pekka Haavisto: Concluding remarks