The many faces of the Chinese Communist Party’s outreach in Europe

One influential actor that has been largely overlooked in European debates on China as a ‘systemic rival’ is the Chinese Communist Party’s International Department (CCP-ID). Building on a comprehensive dataset that allows us to trace China’s international party cooperation since the early 2000s, we not only investigate the CCP-ID’s networking activities across Europe but also zoom in on the CCP-ID’s engagement in the Czech Republic, Germany, and the UK. The main purpose of the CCP-ID is to foster elite networks and to build personal relationships. By identifying and mobilising individuals who will ‘speak in favour of China’ in domestic political debates within Europe or who publicly endorse China’s positions in Chinese media, the CCP-ID seeks to provide the CCP with external legitimacy. It is the great flexibility in the CCP’s strategies and instruments and the many faces of its activities that make it a potent player in Sino-European relations to which policymakers and academics alike should pay more attention.