The New Silk Road Initiative of China and EU Strategy

The center of gravity of the world economy is shifting from the West to the Asian continent with China. China's new Silk Road initiative is one of the most important indicators of the shift in centrality. The key question is what strategy has Europe taken towards the Silk Road initiative? The research hypothesis suggests that European countries are skeptical about China's true aims and intentions in presenting the Silk Road initiative. In this regard, Europe seeks to pursue China's strategy of assimilating and then controlling it through prudent cooperation with China to advance the plan. The findings of the study showed that, from the perspective of the European Union, although China is trying to be transparent about its strategy, the purpose of the Silk Road strategy for cooperation with the European Union or some European countries has not been specified. The European Union believes China's approach is to trade unilaterally and export goods to Europe. The research topic is examined in accordance with the theoretical framework of the Beijing Consensus. The method of measuring and examining the subject is a descriptive-analytical method.