The EU’s counter-project to China’s “One Belt One Road” – EURACTIV.com

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For a long time, Western diplomats in the European Union and other regions have been paying close attention to China’s “One Belt One Road” Initiative (BRI), an ambitious infrastructure project that can be traced back to the ancient Silk Road, which contains a large number of development and investment plans. , Extending from East Asia to Europe and other regions.

Initiated by President Xi Jinping in 2013, it has significantly expanded China’s economic and political influence, but in Europe, it has created unease through debt traps (Montenegro Recently) and large-scale investment in critical global infrastructure.

Experts believe that the “Belt and Road” initiative is one of the main pillars of China’s bolder country governance strategy under the leadership of Xi Jinping. It is a boycott of the United States’ “turn to Asia” and the secret of China’s economy falling into the middle-income trap.

The EU foreign ministers will sign an anti-plan for the “Belt and Road” initiative on Monday, with the title “Global Connection to Europe”.

In addition to the 2018 EU-Asia Connectivity Strategy to realize the “global connection” between the EU and Africa and Latin America, a list of “high-impact and visible projects” will be developed in the next 9 months, as well as a list with The soft power spread driven by shiny signs and (hopefully) catchy names.

“The Council noted that other major economies have developed their own interconnection methods and tools, and emphasized that all such initiatives and actions need to adopt high international standards,” EURACTIV saw the conclusion, adding that the EU Chief Diplomat , Joseph Borrell is “quickly implementing” this idea.

According to EURACTIV, the EU ambassador has reached an agreement on the conclusion, and the text has not been changed.

EURACTIV understands that the European Commission is cooperating with the European External Action Agency and various commission service agencies on how to cooperate with the Council’s conclusions, and will look for ways to cooperate with member states to mobilize the public and private sectors and provide legal basis. The economic framework for investment in different regions of the world.

A fThe final version of the newsletter is expected to be announced in Ursula von der Lein’s State of the Union speech in the fall.

But will this idea succeed?

EURACTIV understands that the current European approach and how it differs from the U.S. and Chinese approaches are still unclear.

The main political impetus for the EU’s overall strategy comes from member states, especially France and Germany, but some sources say that due to different geographic (and economic) priorities, the final proposal may be downplayed.

An EU source told EURACTIV that this could also lead to conflicts between Berlin and Paris over which areas to focus on, which initiatives to support, and how much funding to provide.

At the same time, several EU diplomats pointed out that the conclusion did not mention the budget line of the initiative, and that the incentives for EU companies to enter strategically important but high economic risk regions were insufficient.

“It remains to be seen how the people-centred approach and sustainability aspects translate into international connectivity. Europe still needs to determine which countries to deal with, how and what these countries will get from it,” the source added.

The European Commission on Foreign Relations (ECFR) transatlantic senior researcher Andrew Small told EURACTIV: “The successful EU plan requires a strong narrative, reliable resources, political commitment, and much more decentralization than before. , More tentative efforts.”

Small said that this will require countries and investors to understand what it is and how to use financing, which is easier said than done. It also requires political commitment to break the bureaucratic silos and provide a clear strategic direction.

“There are a lot of people in the EU system who have considered all these issues very seriously and know what needs to be done, including all kinds of clever financing methods-now they need proper support,” he added.

Looking at Europe, Russia has become one of the most enthusiastic countries in the “Belt and Road” initiative partnerOther third countries, especially India and Japan, are trying to strike a balance between their concerns about China’s ambitions and the potential benefits of the “Belt and Road” initiative.

At the same time, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China recommended that Europe review its internal regulations and fashion shields to protect itself from market distortions related to the “Belt and Road” initiative and promote mutual benefits with China.

When asked by EURACTIV whether the new plan will affect China’s business opportunities in Europe, the Chamber of Commerce stated, “The EU needs to play a more active role on the global stage, repeat its interconnection miracle in other regions, and adjust its own rules to counter China goes global”.

“At the same time, the EU must remain fundamentally open to private investment and ensure that legitimate Chinese private investment can continue to follow market forces in the European economy,” it added. “It goes without saying that the EU should continue to expand with China. Cooperation in fields of mutual interest such as climate change, biodiversity, energy and international development.”

What would the Chinese do?

When asked about Beijing’s views on the leaked plan, the Chinese mission to the European Union told EURACTIV that they were unable to comment and were waiting for the EU’s official announcement on the matter.

– Luca Bertuzzi reported for this article.

Olympic boycott? For various reasons, boycotts of the Olympics have occurred several times, most notably when the US leadership boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

The European Parliament now has Call on the EU to boycott the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Unless China improves the human rights situation in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, where Uighur Muslim minorities live.

Hard or soft? Slovenia’s Prime Minister Janez Janša told the parliament that the EU must provide strategic answers to strategic challenges. Both soft and hard power Become a major player in the region and the world. Well, we’ve heard of this before, haven’t we?

Sanhai. Bulgaria is the host of this year’s Three Seas Initiative (3SI) summit, which aims to promote cooperation among 12 European countries and their partners in the fields of energy, transportation and digital. It will also pay attention to the current situation in Ukraine and Belarus, as well as Bulgaria’s position on the future expansion of the EU. Germany hopes the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) promoted by the United States Be part of European policies and investment tools.

However, this happened at a very inconvenient time-just before the general election in Bulgaria on Sunday. When local politics interferes with politics, things are not good. write George Godev.

Transatlantic connection

Stand-in ambassador. Professional diplomat Kelly Adams-Smith (Kelly Adams-Smith) is Washington’s new deputy ambassador to the European Union and Chargé d’Affaires. She most recently served as a senior national security officer for Vice President Kamala Harris and has served as a diplomat at the US embassies in London and Prague. She worked for former US President Barack Obama and served on his National Security Council. Adam Smith will remain in office until Biden nominates and the U.S. Senate confirms the new official ambassador.

Defensive angle

I-NATO. NATO leaders emphasized in June The desire to deepen the dialogue Practical cooperation with alliance partners, including the European Union and the Indo-Pacific region (Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea).

Members of the European Parliament emphasized in a report that a rejuvenated strategic EU-NATO partnership is essential to address the security challenges facing Europe and its neighbors adoption this week. They also emphasized the need for a coordinated transatlantic strategy for Russia and China.

Jet scramble. On Thursday, a press conference attended by the Spanish Prime Minister at the NATO base in Lithuania suddenly fell into chaos. At that time, the pilots rushed out two fighter jets to respond to the alert that an unknown aircraft had attacked. Invading the sky of the Baltic Sea.

Zoom in latest

Seek a compromise. Slovenian President Borut Pahor met with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev to discuss Bulgaria’s right to veto North Macedonia’s accession to the European Union.The President’s personal commitment Seek a compromise solution Pahor’s office stated that this will pave the way for negotiations for North Macedonia’s accession to the European Union.

Media dilemma. The Parliament voted in favor of the election of Armela Krasniqi (Armela Krasniqi) as chairman of the Albanian Audiovisual Media Authority (AMA). Arouse criticism From the European Union Tirana office.

Youth employment. The EU Minister of Employment and Social Affairs and his colleagues in the Western Balkans held talks in Slovenia to discuss measures Let young people enter the labor market, District officials called for the implementation of a youth job security program.