Italy takes u-turn on own project in China’s 'Belt & Road initiative'; PM Draghi to review

In a key development witnessed in the G7 Summit, Italy's (relatively new) Prime Minister Mario Draghi assured that China’s expansionist ‘Belt and Road initiative’ will be assessed carefully. The statement holds relevance as Italy, before PM Draghi took over the office, in a bid to avail certain benefits from China which included the revival of Italy's economy, had endorsed the initiative in 2019. 

Italy takes a U-turn, says ‘Belt and Road initiative’ to be accessed carefully

PM Draghi, who has earlier served as the President of the European Central Bank, talking about China, asserted, "It’s an autocracy that does not adhere to multilateral rules and does not share the same vision of the world that the democracies have." Pointing out that there is a need to co-operate, he added, "But we also need to be frank about things that we do not share and do not accept." 

He asserted that though the country’s participation in China’s expansionist policy was not raised at G7, the agreement between the two countries regarding the initiative will be carefully assessed.

 It is pertinent to mention here that during the summit, the G7 countries offered help to developing nations to counter the Belt and Road Initiative of China and its paramount leader President Xi Jinping. Also, an idea of a new global infrastructure initiative called Build Back Better World(B3W) to check the growing influence of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, was proposed. Confirming the news, US President Joe Biden said, "The details of the project are underway. We have agreed to put together a committee to do that."

Belt and Road Initiative of China

In 2013, Chinese President Xi Xinping mooted the idea to revive the ancient Silk route and termed it as One Belt One Road (OBOR). He presented OBOR as a program that will propel infrastructure growth in participating nations and increase connectivity across Central Asia, Europe, and Africa thus significantly increasing trade. The projects that China had financed before 2013 were amalgamated in OBOR. The OBOR initiative was later named the Belt and Road Initiative.

India has in the past expressed concerns about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, the flagship project of BRI, as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. China, however, has been defending the CPEC, saying it is an economic project not aimed at any third country. However, completing projects along the CPEC has turned out to be a task that even China finds difficult, with only a third of the entailed projects estimated to be on track at the moment.

Though India has officially not reacted to G7 countries' latest project, which is seen as a counter to the Belt and Road Initiative,  it is expected that it may play a key part in any effort to counter-balance the Dragon.

(Credit-AP)