| Synopsis: |
This book seeks to explore the question of whether there truly is a `Nordic model' of diplomacy with China. In some areas, a specific Nordic approach can be observed, including areas related to economic cooperation, Arctic diplomacy, and institution-building. However, the Nordic states have also experienced widely differing historical experiences with China leading up to the present day. Some states, such as Denmark and Iceland, have built strong multifaceted relations with China, while on the other side of the spectrum, Norway has been struggling with its Chinese diplomacy in the wake of the 2010 Nobel Prize incident, which until late 2016 had dominated bilateral relations. Each of the Nordic states has also had to balance their China relations with those of the EU and other major players such as the United States.Assuming a Nordic model can be argued, this opens the door to several other questions. Can there be a more unified sub-regional Nordic approach to Beijing, and even the possibility of a subregional dialogue between the Nordics and Beijing in key policy areas? Will China's developing `Belt and Road' trade routes linking China to Europe through land and sea bridges have an effect on Nordic diplomacy in relation to other parts of Europe? Is there a Nordic identity in the region's key relations with Beijing? Moreover, what can the European Union, which itself is struggling to develop a unified China policy in the wake of internal and external challenges, learn from the Nordic experience? This book, the first of its kind to address the question of a specifically Nordic approach to Chinese relations, not only explores the contributions of the Nordics to China relations, but also add to the greater study of sub-regional approaches to Chinese diplomacy at a time when Sino-European relations are arguably at their most complex. This book will be of much interest to students of Chinese politics, Nordic politics, diplomacy studesn and IR in general. |