Sarah Kirchberger

Since 2017, Sarah Kirchberger is the head of the Center for Asia-Pacific Strategy and Security. She was previously a senior research associate with the Faculty of East Asian Studies, University of Bochum, and an assistant professor of Contemporary China Studies at the University of Hamburg, after serving for three years as a naval analyst with shipbuilding company Blohm + Voss. She completed her PhD degree in Sinology in 2003 and also holds an MA degree in Sinology, Political Science and Archaeology from the University of Hamburg.  She will stay at EURICS from 1st of March to 31th May of 2020. 

Research project

  The blue economy activities of China affect European interests create business opportunities when there is a European technology lead (for example development of offshore wind power by EDF in China’s EEZ) but they also put European industries at risk of being driven out of business (high-end shipbuilding such as luxury cruise ships, LNG propulsion). France pays considerable attention to the issue of China’s competition (President Macron’s decision to temporarily nationalize STX France to prevent a technology transfer to China through Fincantieri’s JV); German Chancellor Merkel has made clear that Germany wanted to work with France to create a Franco-German engine in support of Europe’s blue economy. The project will start from an analysis of the strategies of leading Chinese corporate actors: COSCO, China Merchants Group, the new entity after the announced merger of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) and China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), etc.