representing diplomatic policies and positions of EU member states at the UN
Security Council is limited. Though the EU attempts to speak with one voice over
affairs at the UN Security Council, it cannot represent the EU member states, nor
can it ensure that all member states hold unified positions. As a matter of fact, EU
member states have different views and positions on many issues.
Unequal statuses and differences in powers and functions determine that the EU
only plays a limited role in affairs relating to or in the charge of the UN Security
Council in many cases, especially when the EU member states hold different views
and positions. Under many circumstances, China can do nothing but cooperate with
some EU member states rather than with the EU itself.
5.3.2 Different Views of the Two Sides on Many Issues
In many cases, different understandings of basic principles of international law can
determine and explain why the position and policy of a particular country on
international issues are different from those of other countries. This is the case
especially when there are different understandings of the principles of the sovereign
state and non-intervention. China and the EU obviously have different under-
standings of theCharter of the United Nationsand some basic principles of
international law; however, these differences exert a great impact on China-EU
cooperation in manyfields, such as peacekeeping and the use of force as mentioned
above. Comparatively speaking, China attaches more importance to dialogue and
diplomatic solutions and is very cautious about sanctions; China opposes unilateral
actions and emphasizes the role of the UN Security Council and multilateral
mechanisms. However, China’s attitudes are often criticized by Western countries,
including Europe. They believe that China has failed to do enough to ensure
effective sanctions. In fact, regarding views and methods concerning the issue of
nuclear proliferation, disagreement between China and the EU and other Western
countries mainly relates to the method most suited to addressing such an issue
rather than the willingness of both sides to co-operate.
5.3.3 Different Interests of the Two Sides in Different
Affairs, Events and Fields
Obviously, China and the EU have different interests in the same situation due to
geopolitics, different development levels and different issues for each side.
Sometimes, differences in interests determine different positions and tendencies on
the two sides under different circumstances. For example, on the North Korean
nuclear issue, though China and the EU share some common basic goals such as
opposition against North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and insisting on
114 C. Weidong