China's Role and Perception in the Baltic States: Implications for National Security and NATO

As NATO in on the brink of negotiating a new Strategic Concept for this decade, the attention of the Alliance is increasingly turning towards China. The "NATO 2030: United for a New Era" Reflection group final report attests to that, calling on NATO to "show political cohesion and remain a platform for consultation on China’s actions and Allies’ reactions; defending Allies’ values and an international order based on rules." The Member states, however, differ in their reading of the China challenge. In order to contribute to a cohesive NATO and well-informed local audiences, it is important to measure, debate, analyze and compare the perceptions of China among NATO Member states, and explain to the local stakeholders and populations how such perceptions measure up against their national and collective security. The need to create a link with the stakeholders and the public is especially pertinent in the Baltic region and in Latvia in particular. With the recent exception of Lithuania, China appears to be a distant concern in the region concentrated first and foremost on the Russia threat.
The results of the project will contribute to NATO's communication of cohesion, values and a rules-based international order. The project will be curated by the Rīga Stradiņš University China Studies centre -- the top China policy expertise facility in the country -- in cooperation with the Department of Political science. The RSU Department of Political science is an experienced NATO PDD partner that delivered a widely impactful project "Willingness to Defend Own Country in the Baltic States: Implications for National Security and NATO`s Collective Defence" in 2021: (https://dspace.rsu.lv/jspui/bitstream/123456789/6902/5/Willingness%20to%20defend%2026112021-2_IPD-1705.pdf).