Economic Cooperation in the Shadow of Contested Sovereignty

This open access book is the first of its kind to address a question of both theoretical and practical significance: how do countries or entities approach economic cooperation in the face of vexing political concerns and overlapping sovereignty claims? Built upon three contemporary case studies on North-South Korea, China-Taiwan, and North-South Cyprus – representative pairs of ‘divided nations’, broadly defined – the book explores from both an empirical and a conceptual perspective the underlying factors, approaches and patterns that influence the economic relationship between the two sides. The book examines complex dynamics and identifies critical factors across the case studies, making a timely contribution to debates surrounding sovereignty, democracy and legitimacy in the context of international economic laws given the shifting geopolitical landscape. It further informs countries that do not share the same features of divided nations but nonetheless experience diplomatic crises or military conflicts, which render their economic cooperation sensitive and strenuous. This book is a must-read for researchers, trade lawyers, and students in international law and international relations. It also serves as a valuable asset for negotiators, diplomats and policymakers, providing crucial insights for making decisions that can either escalate or de-escalate geopolitical conflicts. The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the Academia Sinica Thematic Program.

Chien-Huei Wu is Research Professor and Fellow of the Institute of European and American Studies, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan. He is the author of Law and Politics on Export Restrictions: WTO and Beyond (CUP, 2021) and WTO and the Greater China: Economic Integration and Dispute Resolution (Nijhoff, 2012).

Ching-Fu Lin is Professor at the Institute of Law for Science and Technology, and Director of Interdisciplinary Program of Management and Technology, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan.

Han-Wei Liu is Associate Professor of Law at Singapore Management University and Senior Fellow at Melbourne Law School. He writes on international economic law, law and technology, and financial regulations. His books include Economic Cooperation in the Shadow of Contested Sovereignty (2025) and Australian Banking and Finance Law and Regulation (2024).

Gabrielle Marceau is Honorary Professor (Emeritus) at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and Visiting Professor at the University of Ottawa, Canada. She worked at the World Trade Organization Secretariat for over 30 years, serving as a legal adviser in international disputes, in the Cabinet of Director-General Pascal Lamy, and in the Economic Research
and Statistics Division.

Krista Nadakavukaren Schefer is Vice Director at the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law, Switzerland.