Saturday, March 23, 2019
Defying Allies, Italy Signs On to New Silk Road With China
Despite warnings from its European allies as well as America, Italy has signed a deal with China which progresses the development of China's New Silk Road. The New Silk Road is a massive worldwide infrastructure project that the Chinese are undertaking to transport Chinese goods and resources through Asia, Europe, and Africa. The deal outlined billions in euros worth of agreements between Italian and Chinese companies.
The Italian government welcomed President Xi Jinping to Rome as a close ally and said that the deal will "build a better relationship" between the two nations. Critics including the Trump administration warn against the growing Chinese influence. One key fear is that the use of Chinese 5G wireless networks developed by Huawei could lead to Beijing spying on communications. The Interior Minister himself of Italy was absent from the deal signing due to his reservations on the deal, but ultimately concluded that as long as it served Italian interests "he was satisfied."
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/23/world/europe/italy-china-xi-silk-road.html
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3 comments:
I think this will be an interesting case to watch moving forward. Viewing solely from a globalized economic deal this deal seems incredible as it will lead to an easier way for nations to trade and do business with each other. Viewing this deal from a geopolitical lens is much more troubling. Many nations have had concerns about growing Chinese influence especially due to their growing 5G network through Huawei. While on the surface this appears to be a solid economic deal I am sure the geopolitical and security concerns will be closely monitored and scrutinized. I am curious if Italy engaging in this deal will trigger other nations to do the same?
China's One Belt, One Road initiative has come under a lot of fire for being 21st century colonialism via the "debt trap" diplomacy of this initiative. I'm interested to see if having a highly developed nation on their roster will add credibility to the initiative. If Italy runs into the same issues as previous nations (only Chinese workers being used for the projects, poor quality construction, being unable to pay back China and loosing key ports/infrastructure) it could be big issue.
It will definitely be interesting to see how China handles this project in a more developed nation. The Italian government (specifically the interior minister) seems to be aware and even cautious of China's tactics so hopefully, they will not fall into the same "traps" other nations have. The other part of this is previous countries who have fallen in the debt traps that you mentioned may have had a greater need for foreign investments and been much more willing to make sacrifices for economic development. I think Italy is in a different position in that regard and won't be so desperate and dependent on Chinese investment that they have to cater to their every need.
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