Bringing the ports and port diplomacy back-in : A comparative study of the role of Hong Kong, Macao and Shanghai in contemporary EU-China relations

Chan, Wai Shun and Germond, Basil (2020) Bringing the ports and port diplomacy back-in : A comparative study of the role of Hong Kong, Macao and Shanghai in contemporary EU-China relations. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

This thesis aims to bring back the prism of port-cities and port diplomacy to understanding the contemporary relationship between the EU and China. By drawing various concepts from international politics, port studies and political geography, the thesis highlights the crucial role played by port-cities as a vector of economic and political power, via their role as an interface between the “port host”, in the thesis China, and port visitors, in the thesis the European Union. The suggested framework will then be applied to analyse the contemporary EU-China relations through three selected case studies: Hong Kong, where the first European colony was established in 1842; Macao, where the first European settlement was established in 1557; and Shanghai, where the first batch of treaty ports opened by the Europeans without turning Shanghai as a colony of one nation. At the end of the thesis, the thesis will discuss a new academic concept, namely the civilian sea power, and how the academic concept is applicable to contemporary diplomatic studies and international politics.