Europe’s split on China vs. US reveals deeper power imbalances, historic dependencies, and the need for inclusive soft‑power policies
Original framing: “For a China on the rise, soft power is vital” — South China Morning Post
Empirical studies show that cultural exchange programmes improve mutual trust only when they are longitudinal, reciprocal, and include measurable outcomes on public opinion. Recent data on Chinese Confucius Institutes reveal mixed effects on language proficiency but limited impact on democratic values, suggesting a need for evidence‑based policy redesign.
The EU’s split over aligning with China or the US is less a matter of reputation than a symptom of entrenched power asymmetries, historical debts, and the exclusion of indigenous and marginalised voices from soft‑power design.
By integrating scientific evidence, cross‑cultural models, and trickster insights, policymakers can re‑imagine cultural diplomacy as a co‑creative, rights‑based enterprise. Concrete steps—co‑created hubs, funding reforms, narrative monitoring, and historical reconciliation—link actors across continents, embed accountability, and generate resilient, inclusive soft‑power that transcends binary geopolitics.