#Balkans
Connecting CEE and US China-Watchers on Climate Issues
The qualms about China’s impact on the local environments of CEE nations, particularly those along its flagship Belt and Road Initiative, is not confined merely to the CEE region itself. As climate issues are…
After Pelješac, China and Croatia Eye a New Bridge Project
This article is the fourth in a series of articles published under the Future CHOICE initiative. “With great joy I can say that Croatia is connected,” Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, announced. “We have achieved a…
It’s Smooth Sailing for Sinopharm in Serbia
Chinese vaccine manufacturer Sinopharm does not exactly have a stellar market reputation these days. The two Chinese vaccines Sinopharm and Sinovac have both been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) for emergency use,…
China’s Economic Influence Impacts Governance and Climate Policy in CEE
Long-lingering concerns about Chinese influence at the EU’s doorstep have recently become a harsh reality. Montenegro has become a symbol of the debt problems developing countries can fall into by signing on to a…
China’s ‘Digital Silk Road’ Enters the Western Balkans
The Digital Silk Road (DSR), an important component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is an increasingly scrutinized aspect of China’s foreign policy toolbox that combines the efforts of the Chinese government and…
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fishy Promises
CEE-China cooperation could be quite different after Lithuania’s withdrawal from the 17+1 platform. As Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz and his crew of demolition spaceships were nearing Earth to make space for a galactic bypass, the…
Why the EU Must Deal with Montenegro’s Chinese Debt
Dritan Abazović, Montenegro’s deputy prime minister, formally requested the European Union’s help in repaying the debt to the Exim Bank of China in late March. The appeal not only renewed the EU’s focus on…
Leveraging Central and Eastern Europe to Push Back On China
This article was originally published by CEPA and is republished here with the consent of the author. China is making inroads with the EU, and its 17+1 initiative, targeted at Central and Eastern Europe,…
Beijing Finds Its Voice: China’s Rising Media Footprint in South East Europe
China’s entry into and eventual entrenchment in South East Europe (SEE) has proceeded thus far via an apparent paradox. On one hand, it has focused on large-scale, spectacular projects in infrastructure and energy, generating…
China Goes Granular: Beijing’s Multi-Level Approach to the Western Balkans
This article was originally published by the European Council on Foreign Relations and is republished here with the permission of the authors. The morning of September 9 began mundanely enough in Skopje, the capital…
Serbia’s Balancing Act on China
In early September, the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić sat next to his US counterpart Donald Trump and Kosovo’s Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti in the Oval Office to announce the restoration of economic ties…
Fragmented Screening of Chinese Investments in CEE
Countries in Central and Eastern Europe have been perceived to have a less sensitive attitude towards foreign direct investments (FDI), leading to a common reputation as an easier entry point into the EU for…