| dc.description.abstract | The promotion and preservation of human rights is arguably at the very core of the EUs identity and a guiding principle of its foreign policy. Its normative ambitions are what makes it such a unique actor in the international community and a source of legitimacy for the EU as a foreign policy actor. The EUs normative power is challenged by countries such as China, were human rights violations have been taking place at an accelerating rate under the leadership of Xi Jinping. China also differ from other states with a record of human rights violations in the way it “flexes its political muscles with such vigor and determination to undermine the international human rights standards and institutions that could hold it to account” (HRW, 2020). This thesis contributes to the contemporary EU-China relationship and examines the role political values serves in this relationship. In the context of the human rights situation in Xinjiang, I take a closer look at value-based action from the EU and its member states, to better understand how coherent the EU acts as a normative power. The study provides an extensive background and context for the re-emergence of Chinese power in international relations, and to the ongoing human rights scandal in Xinjiang. Normative efforts are investigated at the national- and supranational-level, through the EU-China Human Rights Dialoge, resolutions in European Parliament, UN Human Rights Council, and Asylum policy. Although the EU use rhetorical measure to consistently speak up for normative values, the effectiveness and coherence of its efforts remain questionable. I suggest that EU external action may be better understood though the lens of traditional power-theory and that the “continual expression of deep concern” is more about perception than impact. | |