China’s Identity in International Law

East Asian International Economic Law & Policy Programme, Asian Institute of International Financial Law |
Centre For Chinese Law

This International Workshop was supported by:

The RGC Grant Scheme on “The Impact Of Western International Law On The Disintegration Of The Late Qing Empire, And The Continuing Consequences For East Asia In The 21st Century”

RGC Theme-based Research Scheme Project: “Enhancing Hong Kong’s Future as a Leading International Financial Centre”

1-2 September 2016 (Thursday and Friday)
Academic Conference Room, 11/F Cheng Yu Tung Tower
The University of Hong Kong

Co-Chair:
Professors C. L. Lim, University of Hong Kong
John Anthony Carty, Tsinghua University, Beijing

China’s history with international law as practised on it by the West and Japan has left all its relations politically and militarily with its neighbours volatile and also its relations with the United States. However, too intense an emphasis has been given to the South China Sea issue. It risks neglect of a broader and deeper appraisal of China’s international economic relationships and economic treaty arrangements, as well as the range of choices China faces in the WTO, in the sphere of regional trade arrangements, in China’s investment treaty policy, in the field of international financial institutions and in the developmental field. After all, the main weight of China’s recent strategy for relating to and integrating with the world currently relies upon economic development cooperation and even integration – trade, investment and financial – with important implications for how China perceives itself. Having said that, it appears since 2009 and maybe especially since 2012 that China also wants to deal more with that which has been left over from the past. We propose to take a holistic view of China’s foreign economic treaties and initiatives, and the historical and territorial complexities it now faces. We do so by asking how China currently is perceived, and perceives itself, as a major actor in the international legal order. This interdisciplinary collaboration will be led by presentations on original diplomatic archival research and by international economic and financial law experts.

Programme details PDF