ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the early years of European Union (EU)–China trade relations and disputes, focusing both on diplomatic and legal aspects, from the first trade agreement signed in 1978 until the diplomatic tensions surrounding the Tiananmen Square massacre in June 1989. The main aspects of the European approach towards China were to strengthen the economic co-operation, to bring China into the international trade framework, to support the development of a civil society, to help China fight poverty and to assist China in environmental matters. The chapter also looks at the period after China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2002 and shows how, since then, trade disputes between the two trading blocs have become increasingly politicized, both between the EU and China but also within the EU itself. China had already put serious efforts in building its trade law capacity during its long road to WTO membership.
