Italy has announced its formal withdrawal from the Belt and Road Initiative after joining the China-centered infrastructure and investment project in 2019.
The timing of the announcement that Rome won’t renew its BRI commitment is notable. It came only a day before the EU-China summit, which kicks off on Thursday. The summit will likely be more contentious than usual, with European leaders expected to push China on the treatment of EU firms amid discussions ...
Category: Q&A
A Billion Dollar Copper/Cobalt Mine is Up For Grabs in the DR Congo, Providing Rare Opening For the U.S. to Get in the Market
For the first time in seven years, the United States can re-enter the all-important critical resources mining sector in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where China is the dominant actor. The persistently low price of cobalt, a metal used to ...
Q&A: Chinese, and Nigerian Researchers Collaborate on Super Sub-Saharan Africa Electricity System
China's strategic investments through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) showcase its aspiration to play a role in the global energy infrastructure.
Lots of Smiles and Lots of Handshakes, But What Else Did Syria’s President Get During His Recent Visit to China?
President Bashar al-Assad's visit to China in late September is widely seen as an important step in Syria's re-integration into the international community after years of Western-led international isolation. Assad received a much warmer welcome in China than he would pretty ...
Q&A: Lots of Smiles, Lots of Handshakes, But What Else Did Syrian President Bashar Assad Get During His Recent Visit to China?
President Bashar al-Assad's visit to China in late September is widely seen as an important step in Syria's re-integration into the international community after years of Western-led international isolation. Assad received a much warmer welcome in China than he would pretty ...
Q&A: Financing a Renewables Shift in African Countries as China’s New “Small or Beautiful” Model Takes Root
If you look at the specific demands of many African countries, they are now more focused on production-related activities rather than fancy highways that lead to nowhere.
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Awkward Timing as Italy Withdraws from BRI
Q&A: ASEAN Is Showing Teeth To Myanmar
On the first day of the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, the group leaders released a review on the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC), which was put out in 2021 to help resolve the crisis in Myanmar. The document ...
Q&A: African, Chinese and European Scientists Collaborating to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Kenya’s Smallholder Farms
A growing number of joint research projects between Chinese and African scientists on climate change is increasing collaboration, producing different data to help address challenges brought on by changing weather patterns. At the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi, Zhu ...
Q&A: Untapped Opportunities In Indonesia’s Impact Tech Startups For Chinese Investors
Conversations around the China-Indonesia cooperation usually revolve around the big, flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects like the high-speed rail, the industrial parks, or nickel processing in Morowali and Weda Bay. But, development and sustainability can be driven by a ...
Q&A: China’s Transsion’s Little-Known Phone Repair Business Thrives in Global South, Offers Clues To Sustainable Hardware Services
Carlcare, a post-sales repair service provider, is a little-known unit of Transsion Holdings, a Chinese maker of mobile phones beloved across Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. Like its parent company, Carlcare’s business is thriving in developing countries thanks to its adept localizing; in this case, tapping into ...
Q&A: China’s New Global Initiatives? What Are Its Goals and How Does It Affect the Middle East and Israel?
In the past two years, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced three global initiatives: the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative. To understand the nature of the initiatives and their consequences for the Middle East we spoke with researcher Tuvia Gering, a ...