China’s soft power approach in Europe : Malta and Germany as case studies

Abstract

The question that this dissertation will tackle is regarding whether the pillar of equality and equal treatment when dealing with other states, which was and is still prominent in Chinese government discourse, is seen in the actions the Chinese government takes in relation to soft power strategies. This will be done by comparing the cultural soft power strategies of China in Malta, which represents the small states since it’s among the smallest countries in Europe, and Germany, which represents the larger states because it is one of the largest countries in Europe. This research, has shown that when it comes to soft power strategy, China does to a certain extent, apply equality. When examining the activities held by this Chinese culture centre, which were given specific attention in this dissertation, in both Malta and in Germany, the layout of activities organised seemed to be similar. For example, in both cases, the activities that were held varied in their content and cooperation with other entities. Furthermore, there wasn’t any prominent indication that different approaches were being conducted in relation to the cultural centres.