Nicolas Chapuis, EU Ambassador to China

Relations between the EU and China have deteriorated over the past year following the EU’s move to freeze the ratification of the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) and a series of tit-for-tat sanctions between two of the world’s top trading partners. The relationship appears to be under further strain following alleged discriminatory trade practices against Lithuania.

Despite the worsening relations, both the EU and China are aware of their mutual economic importance. Maintaining a positive economic relationship in the face of both internal and external pressure to take a firmer stance on China, however, has proven a challenge for the EU. Alongside suspending the CAI, in September 2021 the European Parliament voted in favour for the EU to re-define its China strategy, a little over two years after the publication of the EU-China strategic outlook – an ambitious document that presented China as a cooperation partner, an economic competitor, and a systemic rival.

To discuss the current state of EU-China relations, Asia House will welcome Nicolas Chapuis, the European Union’s Ambassador to China, for an exclusive digital briefing with Corporate Members on Thursday 17 February. Ambassador Chapuis will brief Corporate Members on the outlook for the relationship, key areas for further cooperation, as well as the significance of the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) and the possible substance of the Commission’s future EU-China strategy.

Ambassador Chapuis is a French diplomat. A fluent Chinese and Mongol speaker, he began his career in 1980 as the Press Officer of the French Embassy in China. He then served as a diplomat in Beijing, Singapore, Shanghai, and London before being appointed Ambassador of France to Mongolia in 2003 and Canada in 2015. He has served as the Ambassador of the European Union to China since 2018.

This digital briefing is being held exclusively for Asia House Corporate Members. Find out more about Corporate Membership at Asia House.

To register interest in joining this briefing, please contact Programme Manager Olivia Rondonuwu olivia.rondonuwu@asiahouse.co.uk