ICES Annual Conference: EU-China Relations in an Era of Great Power Competition and Global Order Reconfiguration
Hosted by the Institute for China-Europe Studies (ICES), the Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP), the National Institute for South China Sea Studies (NISCSS) and the Institute for China-America Studies (ICAS)
Date and Time:
Wednesday, 09:00 to 14:00, 10 June 2026
Thursday, 09:00 to 14:00, 11 June 2026
Venue: Amigo Hotel, Brussels, Ambassador A&B, Rue de l'Amigo 1, 1000 Bruxelles
Livestream available for the Public Conference.
Background
In partnership with the Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP), the National Institute for South China Sea Studies (NISCSS) and the Institute for China-America Studies (ICAS), the Institute for China-Europe Studies (ICES) is pleased to organise its 2026 Annual Conference.
The rules-based international order is facing widening fractures, as openly acknowledged by national leaders and increasingly perceived by citizens. Structural shifts in global power distribution, intensified strategic competition, and mounting economic and security concerns have all contributed to a more fragmented international environment.
What does this changing landscape mean for the European Union and China? How can the two sides manage competition while preserving space for cooperation where interests converge? And how do transatlantic dynamics shape, constrain, or enable EU-China engagement?
Against this backdrop, ICES considers it both timely and necessary to strengthen dialogue between Europe and China, with the participation of scholars from third parties, particularly the United States. The conference aims to provide a high-level platform for open and frank exchanges, fostering strategic clarity, reducing misperceptions, and identifying practical avenues for cooperation amid growing geopolitical uncertainty.
Provisional Agenda
Day 1: Public Conference (Onsite & Livestream)
Opening
- Brief welcoming remarks: YANG Li, Executive Director of ICES
- Keynote speaker: WU Shicun, ICES Board Director, Chairman of Huayang Institute for Research on Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance, Founding President of NISCSS
- Keynote speaker: TBC, Senior Official, Mission of the People's Republic of China to the European Union
- Keynote speaker: Joanna SZYCHOWSKA, Deputy DG, Director Asia, Services and Digital Trade – Asia (I), Services and Investment, Digital Trade, Intellectual Property and Public Procurement
Panel 1 – Beyond De-risking: Toward a Resilient Framework for EU-China Economic Relations
- Chair: Niklas Swanström – Executive Director, ISDP
- Ceren Ergenc – Research Fellow, CEPS
- CUI Hongjian – Professor and Director of the Center for European Union and Regional Development Studies, Beijing Foreign Studies University
- LIANG Linlin – Director of Communication and Research, China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU)
- Tim Rühlig – Senior Analyst for Global China, EUISS
Panel 2 – The Third Variable: Dynamics and Trade-offs of EU-China-US Relations
- Chair: Sourabh Gupta – Senior Fellow, Institute for China-America Studies
- Anatol Lieven – Director of the Eurasia Program, Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
- André Härtel – Head of the Brussels Office, SWP
- YAN Shaohua – Associate Professor & Deputy Director, Center for China-Europe Relations, Fudan University
- YU Jie – Senior Research Fellow on China, Chatham House
Lunch Discussion
- Chair: Fabian ZULEEG – Chief Executive and Chief Economist, EPC
- FEI Shengchao – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Embassy of the People's Republic of China to the Kingdom of Belgium
Day 2: Closed-door Roundtable (Invitation only)
Panel 3 – Shared Horizons: Managing EU-China Ties through Ocean Stewardship
- Chair: YANG Li – Executive Director, Institute for China-Europe Studies (ICES)
- Eva Pejsova – Japan Chair at the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS), Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB)
- HONG Nong – Executive Director, Institute for China-America Studies (ICAS)
- Niklas Swanström – Executive Director, ISDP
- Stein Tønnesson – Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo; former leader of the Asia Programme, Institute for Security and Development Policy
Panel 4 – Framing the Future: How Narratives Define the EU-China Dialogue
- Chair: Daniel Balazs, Senior Research Analyst, ICES
- Duncan Freeman – Independent Researcher; Lecturer at ICHEC
- Ivano Di Carlo – Senior Policy Analyst, EPC
- JIN Ling – Senior Research Fellow, CIIS
- YU Jie – Senior Research Fellow on China, Chatham House
Registration
In-person Participation for Public Conference:
Please complete the form to register your participation. Due to the limited capacity, registration does not automatically guarantee attendance. Confirmation emails will be sent by the ICES.
Online Participation for Public Conference:
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ph4h8VXQQMCtHHjPrKcZpA
If you have any questions, please contact us via email: info@ices-eu.org