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12. Italy Joins the Belt and Road Initiative: Context, Interests, and Drivers
- Author:
- Dario Cristiani
- Publication Date:
- 04-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- In March 2019, Italy and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) signed a broad and comprehensive, albeit not legally binding, Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Italy to join the Chinese-led Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This has triggered a significant debate—in Brussels as well as in Washington—about whether this decision signalled an Italian shift away from its historical pro-European and pro-Atlantic position, to a more nuanced position open to deepening strategic ties with China. The MoU is not definite proof of such a shift, and the Italian government has denied any strategic change. However, Italy is the first major European country, and the first Group of Seven (G7) member, to formalize its participation with the BRI project. As such, this development is particularly remarkable.
- Topic:
- Diplomacy, International Trade and Finance, Bilateral Relations, European Union, and Economy
- Political Geography:
- China, Europe, Asia, and Italy
13. Islamic Countries Engage with China Against the Background of Repression in Xinjiang
- Author:
- Roie Yellinek
- Publication Date:
- 03-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- State-directed repression and harassment directed against Muslims in China has drawn broad international condemnation throughout the Western world. However, what has been the reaction from the Islamic world itself? Although reactions among major states have varied (as discussed below), the reaction throughout the Islamic world has largely been one of deafening silence—and when voices are raised, they have been faint.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Islam, Prisons/Penal Systems, State Violence, and Surveillance
- Political Geography:
- China, Iran, Turkey, Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Xinjiang
14. Arrests in Poland Contribute to the International Controversies Surrounding Huawei
- Author:
- John Dotson
- Publication Date:
- 02-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- The December 1, 2018, arrest of Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, and the arrest of another Huawei employee in Poland, come on the heels of a series of escalating measures—or measures under consideration—by governments in North America and the Pacific Region to restrict the use of Chinese-manufactured telecommunications equipment. Such measures are now increasingly under consideration in Europe, as well, with major implications not only for the international profile of companies such as Huawei, but also for the construction of advanced communications infrastructure throughout much of the world.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Cybersecurity, Economy, and Research
- Political Geography:
- China, Europe, Asia, Poland, North America, and United States of America
15. The Belt and Road Initiative Still Afloat in South Asia
- Author:
- Sudha Ramachandran
- Publication Date:
- 01-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- South Asian governments are becoming increasingly discontent with Belt and Road Initiative projects. In August, Pakistan’s new government expressed interest in reviewing the CPEC contracts that they perceive to be over-priced, unnecessary, or excessively in the favor of PRC companies (Dawn, September 11). Similar sentiments have been expressed by the new Maldivian government, which is reviewing BRI contracts signed during the rule of former President Abdulla Yameen (Economic Times, November 26). Such actions raise questions as to whether South Asian states might scale down or even cancel BRI projects.
- Topic:
- Development, International Trade and Finance, Treaties and Agreements, Infrastructure, and Soft Power
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, South Asia, India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Maldives
16. Grasping Power with Both Hands: Social Credit, the Mass Line, and Party Control
- Author:
- Samantha Hoffman
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- The CCP’s development of the ‘social credit’ system is another step in the Party’s long exploration of ways to fuse political control and economic prosperity. The expanding global reach of China’s economy means that social credit’s fusion of social and political control will also be used to bend entities outside China’s borders towards the Party’s political objectives. Dozens of international airlines, including four US airlines, recently discovered what this means in practice.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Economy, Ideology, and Surveillance
- Political Geography:
- China and United States of America
17. Risky Business: A Case Study of PRC Investment in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan
- Author:
- Danny Anderson
- Publication Date:
- 08-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- China’s “New Silk Road” or “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) has reached Central Asia in resounding fashion. As a result, the republics of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan have seen large increases in Chinese presence and investment. Although both countries have overlapping needs, the degree and character of PRC involvement in each has differed. PRC investment in Tajikistan is characterized by expensive loans on infrastructure investment and energy projects that the country may be unable to repay (Avesta.tj, December 25, 2017). Kyrgyzstan, while having hosted similar projects, is also attempting to move the country into the twenty-first century by improving its transportation and digital infrastructure (Tazakoom.kg). Development experts classify both countries as “high-risk” for debt distress given public debt projections (Cgdev.org). However, despite the risk of such an outcome, both countries appear inclined to welcome PRC investment with open arms, as a way of funding needed investment like power generation and logistical links with the outside world.
- Topic:
- Development, Infrastructure, Economic growth, and Soft Power
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan
18. Censorship, Geopolitical Time Bombs, and China’s Islamophobia Problem
- Author:
- Matt Schrader
- Publication Date:
- 07-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- China has a serious and worsening Islamophobia problem. While relations between China’s Muslim minorities and its Han majority have been fraught since 2009’s deadly inter-ethnic riots in the far western city of Urumqi, recent years have seen the normalization of online hate speech directed at Muslims. The rise of Islamophobia inside China is a product both of government action, and of the government’s failure to act. Commentary on the recent death of a prominent Muslim leader in the western province of Qinghai highlights the extent to which the situation has deteriorated, and suggests the ways in which China’s warped online discourse could blunt its efforts to build influence and win friends in countries across the Muslim world.
- Topic:
- Demographics, Ethnic Conflict, Islam, Geopolitics, and Islamophobia
- Political Geography:
- China and Gulf Nations
19. Why India Won’t Play Its ‘Tibet Card’
- Author:
- Sudha Ramachandran
- Publication Date:
- 05-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- Upon coming to power in May 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) adopted a more muscular approach to China than its predecessors. As part of this, it was not averse to using the Dalai Lama and the CTA to gain leverage in its dealings with China. Its recent move to put distance between itself and Dharamsala reflects an understanding that playing the ‘Tibet card’ brought India no benefits. In fact, the failure of the BJP’s four-year gambit reaffirms what many Indian diplomats and scholars have been saying for decades: there is no ‘Tibet card’ for India to play.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, and Territorial Disputes
- Political Geography:
- China, India, Asia, and Tibet
20. Can China Realize Africa’s Dream of an East-West Transport Link?
- Author:
- Cobus van Staden
- Publication Date:
- 04-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- China Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- Several ambitious schemes have been proposed to link Africa’s east and west coasts, some of which are closer to full realization than others. Most notable in this respect is a plan to expand the existing Trans-African Highway 5 (TAH5) into a true cross-continental road and rail link, the early stages of which China has helped bring to fruition where Western consortiums failed. Likewise, Chinese investment in African infrastructure through Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) may help create expanded sub-regional linkages, particularly in East Africa, that could help facilitate the emergence of an eventual, true East-West link in the long term. However, in the short-to-mid-term, the obstacles to a truly robust set of East-West transport links are formidable, and it is unlikely that China’s involvement will be a panacea.
- Topic:
- Development, International Trade and Finance, Infrastructure, and Soft Power
- Political Geography:
- Africa, China, and Asia