that China and Europe started diplomatic contacts as early as the 1970s, it has only
been a short history for the comprehensive engagement in a real sense between the
two sides, and contacts between the two sides are unbalanced at different levels and
in different institutions. In particular, channels for communication between the
European Parliament and the Chinese authorities fell relatively short, and part of the
European parliamentarians held prejudice against China for a long time and were
not so willing to maintain deep engagement with the Chinese Government.^84
2.4.2.3 2009–2013: The EU’s Human Rights Policy Towards China
and the Human Rights Dialogue in the Process of Adjustment
China-EU relations have improved since 2009. However, the signs showing a
favorable turn in bilateral relations were not so obvious in the area of human rights,
but some signs of policy adjustments still merit attention.
First, as shown by the arrangements of the EU’s cooperation projects towards
China and by a comparison of the EU’s 2007–2010 interim assessment of its
strategy towards China and the 2007–2012 country strategy paper towards China on
the one hand and the 2002–2006 country strategy paper towards China on the other,
promoting China’s democracy and human rights was one of strategic priorities of
the EU’s actions towards China before 2006,^85 while such topics were no longer
identified as a separate strategic priority in the 2007–2012 paper.^86 Instead, the EU
emphasized its support for China’s reform through sector dialogue, projects under
which were not related directly to the human rights issue. However, the EU also
expressed support for the modernization of China’s public management system and
hoped that civil society would play potential roles in the future political, economic,
social and management environments in China. Overall, changes have taken place
as to the modes of links between the EU’s human rights appeals with its assistance
projects towards China.
Second, in the recent human rights report, the EU expressed its intention to
conduct a human rights dialogue within the framework of the China-EU Partnership
and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) in the future and believed that this was a“major
opportunity to encourage China to assume greater responsibilities in the human
rights area”.^87 As the EU often takes use of conditionality to link human rights
terms to the agreements in the otherfields when signing a bilateral agreement with a
third country, this position means that the human rights issue may be a potential
policy lever having a greater impact on China-EU relations in the otherfields. Of
(^84) These views came from the interview with an official from the Conference Office of the Mission
of the People’s Republic of China to the European Union by the Author in October, 2008.
(^85) “European Commission Working Document, 2002–2006 Country Strategy Paper, China,”p. 25.
(^86) Three strategic priorities of the EU’s cooperation towards China in 2007–2012 are sector dia-
logue, climate change and human resources development, see“European Commission Working
Document, 2002–2006 Country Strategy Paper, China”,p.4.
(^87) See European Commission ( 2010 , p. 157).
64 J. Li et al.