Europe-China: convergence, divergence and the vital space between

With over 25 years of experience in diplomacy, Piritta Asunmaa has held numerous positions across the Finnish Foreign Ministry. Prior to taking up her current post as Director-General of the Department for the Americas and Asia, she served as Ambassador and Head of Mission to NATO, as well as as Finland’s representative to the EU’s Political and Security Committee. Over the course of her career, Asunmaa has gained experience through posts in both Washington and Paris, as well as across the Ministry’s many departments.

Maja Bakran Marcich is responsible for coordinating activities related to investment, as well as innovative and sustainable transport, and has been involved in discussions relating to the EU-China Connectivity Platform. Prior joining the European Commission, she served as Assistant Minister for Europe in the Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. Having held numerous posts in the Ministry throughout her career, Bakran Marcich was also responsible for horizontal coordination of the Croatian accession negotiations, as well as for setting up and managing Croatia’s coordination system for European Affairs.

Peter Berz has over 25 years of experience working in the European Commission. In his current position in the Directorate-General for Trade, he is responsible for the European Union’s trade and investment relations with countries across Asia and Latin America. Prior to this, Berz held various other positions in the European Commission, including working with third countries on intellectual property rights and on trade in textiles, as well as on transatlantic relations – including during his tenure at the EU Delegation in Washington, D.C.

Diego Gilardoni is an internationally recognised expert and executive advisor on global business and communication. An expert on China, where he has worked as a consultant for European companies, he is the author of ‘Decoding China: cross-cultural strategies for successful business with the Chinese’, a book based on his expertise helping companies navigate the unchartered waters of globalisation by bridging the gaps between different management and business cultures. Gilardoni is a member of the international advisory board of Tsinghua University’s National Image Research Center, the leading think tank providing advice to Chinese institutions and corporations on public and corporate diplomacy strategies. He was recently Visiting Professor in Global Business and Corporate Diplomacy at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.

Having begun his diplomatic career in 1978, Wu Hailong has served in numerous positions, including as Ambassador in both Vienna and Geneva, during which appointments he served as China’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Offices and other international organizations present. He also served as Ambassador and Head of Mission to the European Union. Since leaving the Foreign Ministry, Wu has gone on to serve as President of the Chinese People’s Institute of Foreign Affairs and now leads the CPDA.

Currently serving as European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Phil Hogan was responsible for signing the recent landmark agreement on Geographical Indications (GI) between China and the EU. During his former tenure as Ireland’s Minister for the Environment and Local Government, he implemented a broad-ranging agenda, including the largest reform of local government since the founding of the Irish state. Hogan has occupied various other senior posts at local, national and European level, including President of the Council of EU Environment Ministers and Chairman of the European People’s Party of Environment Ministers.

A member of the European Parliament for twenty years, Jo Leinen previously served as President of the Constitutional Affairs Committee, Chair of the Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and took part in the Convention for the Elaboration of a Charter of Fundamental Rights for the EU. In his latest role he was responsible for relations with China. His work also covered relations between the EU and UN, as well as with the African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP). Prior to joining the European Parliament, Leinen was Minister for the Environment in the State Government of Saarland, Germany.

Under Miao Lu’s leadership, the Center for China and Globalization has grown over the last eleven years from a small research centre into China’s largest independent think tank, with research and policy advisory capacities over the areas of global governance, international migration, and global trade and investment relations. She has authored numerous publications in Chinese and English, and has been a visiting fellow at New York University and Harvard University. She is also a member of Hupan University, an exclusive programme founded by Alibaba’s Jack Ma which admits outstanding social and business entrepreneurs under the age of 35. In 2016, Miao received the “International Young Leader” award from King of the Belgians H.M. Philippe Leopold Louis Marie.

Zhang Ming has had a long and distinguished career in the diplomatic service, specialising in West Asian and North African affairs. Starting his career by working in Chinese embassies in Yemen, Oman and Israel, he later became Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Kenya, Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Permanent Representative to UN-Habitat. Prior to his appointment to Ambassador of the Chinese Mission to the EU, Zhang served as Vice-Minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Pronouns: she/her
Amanda Rohde-Stadler is responsible for big picture programming coherence across Friends of Europe’s areas of expertise, as well as monitoring & evaluation. Through her previous roles in the organisation, she oversaw programme delivery across all areas of expertise, and carried out the production and delivery of activities and publications across a wide range of themes, including: digital & data governance; peace, security & defence; EU-Asia relations; and migration & inclusion. She was also involved in the inception phase of the Africa-Europe Foundation, with a focus on policy and partnerships. Prior to joining Friends of Europe in 2016, she worked in the Research Unit of International Crisis Group – tracking conflicts across Africa and Asia – and as a teacher in South Korea. Amanda holds a Master of Advanced International Studies from the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, where she focused her studies on conflict and crisis analysis, and a BA in linguistics from the University of Florida with a special focus on African languages and literature. 

Based in Beijing, Yang Rui has previously worked as the Director and Executive President of CIRD’s Beijing office. With a Master’s degree in public administration, her current research focuses on the history of China’s reform and opening up. Yang is also a research fellow at the China Enterprise Reform and Development Society.

Wu Shicun is an expert on the history and geography of the South China Sea, maritime delimitation, maritime economy, international relations and regional security strategies. He holds leadership roles in several research institutions, including as Chairman of the China-Southeast Asia Research Center on the South China Sea’s Board of Directors, Vice President of the China Institute for Free Trade Ports Studies and Deputy Director of Nanjing University’s Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies. Wu’s work is widely published and his expertise is frequently sought for media interviews on the South China Sea, regional security issues, the Belt & Road Initiative and the development of Hainan Province.

Astrid Skala-Kuhmann is an expert in emerging markets and sustainability issues with a focus on China, having served for six years as GIZ’s chief resident representative and country director there. She later served as GIZ’s Director-General of Global Partnerships – Emerging Economies. In her current capacity, she advises on matters related to China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Skala-Kuhmann is also co-dean for the “Zukunftsbrücke” (Sino-German Young Professional Campus) and a supervisory board member of Lenzing AG and Semperit AG, Austria, both stock-listed with global scopes.

With more than twenty years’ experience in the EU’s external relations and trade policy, Gunnar Wiegand has previously served as Spokesman for External Relations to Commissioner Chris Patten; Head of Unit for Relations with the United States and Canada at the European Commission’s External Relations Directorate-General; and Deputy Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia at the EEAS, during which time he was the EU’s Chief Negotiator for the Association Agreements with Moldova, Georgia and Armenia, as well as the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Kazakhstan. Wiegand also acted as the EU’s Chief Negotiator for the new EU-Japan Strategic Partnership Agreement.

Formerly working as a diplomat at the Chinese Mission to the European Union, Wang Yiwei’s main research interests include Belt & Road studies, European integration, public diplomacy, Chinese foreign policy and EU-China relations. His long experience in academia has led him to teach at universities across China, South Korea and the United States. Wang’s latest publications include China connects the world: what behind the Belt & Road Initiative, and he is frequently interviewed by Chinese and Western media outlets.

With an extensive background in international trade studies, Li Yong is frequently consulted by government departments for analysis on major international trade issues and policy recommendations. He is a standing council member of numerous committees and societies, focusing on issues like the World Trade Organization (WTO) and American and European economic and strategic studies. Li is also China Global Television Network’s (CGTN) current affairs and economics commentator, and he is frequently interviewed by both Chinese and Western media on China-US relations, as well as international economic and trade issues.

As a student of business administration and economics, Frank Zhao focuses his studies on logistics management. Over the course of his academic career, he aims to bridge the gap between Europe and China in the trade sector. To complement his studies in logistics, Zhao worked as an assistant at Mujjo BV – a Dutch producer of leather tech accessories – where he designed a new warehouse layout to optimise available space. During this time, he also focused on business communication between Western customers and Chinese manufacturers, addressing the different approaches to commerce in international trade.