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 ...
Country: China
Awkward Timing as Italy Withdraws from BRI
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 ...
China’s Contradictory Position At COP28
Keeping track of China’s role at the COP28 climate gathering has been an exercise in sitting with contradiction. On the one hand, China’s the worst! A study released this week showed that Chinese and Indian emissions pushed dangerous heat-trapping emissions 1.1% higher ...
China, India Push Emissions Higher as COP28 Struggles with Fossil Fuels
Planet-heating carbon dioxide emissions grew by 1.1% this year, largely driven by an economic resurgence in China, India, and the aviation industry, according to projections by the Global Carbon Budget. The news comes as disputes around how to deal with carbon emissions ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Awkward Timing as Italy Withdraws from BRI
WEEK IN REVIEW: Vietnamese Officials Preparing for Chinese President Xi Jinping Visit Next Week
Vietnamese officials are preparing for Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit Hanoi next Tuesday and Wednesday, well-placed sourced told Bloomberg. This will be Xi's first trip to Vietnam since 2017 and follows Hanoi's recent upgrade of diplomatic ties with both the U.S. and Japan. (BLOOMBERG) ...
If the U.S. Really Wants to Compete With China in Africa, Then It Needs to Keep Its Promises
It was almost a year ago when Joe Biden promised everyone at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit that he would visit the continent in 2023. Now, with just two weeks left before the Christmas holiday, the president’s pledge is looking increasingly uncertain.
Top U.S. and Chinese Diplomats Talk Israel-Hamar War, Bilateral Ties
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed ways to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza from spreading and agreed to build on recent progress in bilateral ties. “The top priority is to cease fire and to ...
G7 Virtual Meeting With Zelensky Turns Focus to Beijing and South China Sea
The G7 on Wednesday issued a clear warning against China’s military buildup in the South China Sea and stressed that member countries will divest and diversify from China when needed to keep their economies healthy. The wars in Ukraine and the Middle ...
China Hasn’t Used Economic Coercion Even As Philippines Ramped Up South China Sea Strategy: Analyst
Concerns that China might use economic coercion against the Philippines, particularly as Manila ramps up its strategy of showcasing Chinese “aggression” in the South China Sea, have not been borne out, a noted analyst on the issue said. The Philippines’ strategy ...
Vietnam’s Biggest Export Market U.S., Import Source China
The U.S. was Vietnam’s biggest export market in the first 11 months of 2023 at $88 billion, down 13% year-on-year. China was second at $56 billion. Meanwhile, China was Vietnam’s largest import market at $100 billion, followed by South Korea at ...
Beijing Hosts 8th Lancang-Mekong Foreign Ministers Meeting
Beijing hosted the 8th Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Thursday, jointly led by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Myanmar’s Deputy Prime Minister U Than Swe. Wang met individually with multiple representatives on Wednesday as they arrived for ...
China-Angola Meeting As Luanda Navigates Great Power Competition
Angola’s Foreign Minister Téte António met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Wednesday. He also signed a bilateral investment protection measure with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. China has sometimes struggled to get such formal investment protection guarantees from ...
China Cuts Tariffs for Six African Countries
China’s customs authorities announced that goods from six least-developed African countries will be exempt from tariffs. 98% of imports from Angola, Gambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Mali, and Mauritania will be affected. (XINHUA)
Sino-French Collaboration on South African Power Plant
Sungrow Power Supply, a Chinese maker of solar components, will partner with EDF Renewables, a French green power company, on a new combined solar and wind power plant in South Africa. Sungrow will supply liquid-cooled power storage facilities for the project, ...