There is a large amount of water consumption embodied in energy production. Driven by a growing population and economy, the energy sector will continue to expand, increasing more pressure on the fresh water demand of countries. This paper analyzes the energy-water nexus embodied in international energy trade via a combination of input-output analysis (IOA) and ecological network analysis (ENA). The energy-water element nexus is depicted based on a mixed-unit IOA to investigate the parallel relationship between energy and water. ENA is used to uncover energy-water pathways intertwined in global energy trade and identify the pair-wise relationship between countries according to the energy-water pathway nexus. Then, a case study of the international energy-water nexus of China is conducted. The results of energy-water nexus element analysis show that water use per unit of energy products in the country is much greater than those of other countries. Moreover, indirect water use during energy production deserves more attention, which is often neglected in water resource management. The results of energy-water nexus pathway analysis demonstrate that international energy trade has a positive effect on China's water condition, mitigating serious water shortage problems but increasing dependency on other countries and regions. Mutual relationships among trading countries are described using utility and control analyses. The results show that system integrality is arguably more critical in determining system behavior than direct effects alone. Europe changes from a beneficiary in direct mutual relationships to a contributor in integral utility mutual relationships, whereas Australia has an opposite change. Although China has a dominant position in direct relationships, it becomes an equal competitor with the USA in utility mutual relationships. China depends heavily on most countries, especially those in South and Central America, the Middle East, Africa, and Australia. The network mutualism index (=0.56) and synergism index (=9.187) indicate that the current global energy trade network has negative relationships within a competitive environment. Finally, policy and economic suggestions are put forward to alleviate the potential impacts of international energy trade on water scarcity in China. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.