Chinese products are everywhere in Italy. Chinese tourists crowd from Venice to Rome is already now in mass. Italian fashion designer, China is already one of the most important markets. And legendary football clubs such as Inter Milan are now in Chinese hands. However, the eurosceptic government in Rome wants to find a controversial political Deal with Beijing now economically, following countries such as Germany, which do a lot more business with China. And the country desperately needs money. So it’s no wonder that the Chinese state President Xi Jinping in Italy just to enjoy four days of an almost Imperial reception.
As the first great economic nation, as the first member of the seven industrial powers (the G7), and as the first major EU member state has Italy on Saturday, China’s Initiative for a “New silk road”. Under the name of China wants to open up with billions in investments trade routes around the world. What sounds full of promise, to alert the rest of the large EU countries and the USA.
“It is naive to think that you can get in return for a favor to the Chinese government’s great economic support,” said Lucrezia Poggetti from the Mercator Institute for China Studies. “China sits at the longer lever” and get the legitimacy monkey “” for a highly controversial project. Italy break with its historic EU partners such as France and Germany, to the “silk road”-Deal with skepticism.
In the case of the agreements signed, among others, to beef, seeds, oranges, and frozen pork from Italy, which is now allowed to be exported to China. It comes to investing for the ports of Trieste and Genoa, and the look compared to Hamburg or Rotterdam old. “For us, today is a day that “Made in Italy” wins, Italy wins the Italian company to win”, said Vice-head of government: Luigi Di Maio of the Five-star movement. Rome, the dedication comes just at the right time. The country has slipped into recession, the national debt is exorbitantly high. In many places, the infrastructure is dilapidated, as the bridge no fall of Genoa has shown.
the “Belt and Road” (BRI) the projects referred to the Communist leadership in Beijing to investments in ports, roads, Railways, telecommunications networks and airports. Money in economic and trade corridors between China and Europe, to Africa, to Latin America, but also in intra-Asian flow.
diplomats fear warned under China’s new world order
The national security Council of the United States, China pursued a “predatory approach” … to bring the Italian citizens no benefits. Berlin, Brussels and Washington have great concerns – even if German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) held back with open criticism of Italy. She noted at the summit in Brussels, however, that “it is better, if one acts consistently”.
diplomats see a submission under China’s Version of a new world order. China wanted the withdrawal of the super of the USA under the US President Donald Trump and his “America-First”policy, in the resulting political vacuum.
in General, it lacks the projects on transparency, international Standards, environmental safeguards, fair competition and public tendering, which would have to be in an EU country like Italy, respected. The business is made of mostly Chinese companies, which had sent its own workers.
Eastern European countries have already signed up
More than 100 countries, the intention to have a signed statement, including the countries of Eastern Europe. Just for poorer countries, the plans are interesting, because no one else wants to invest in you. Because behind the flowery diplomatic language of some of the “case stick trick,” warned EU diplomats. Care should be taken the case against the dangers of a debt, as it is revealed already in countries such as Sri Lanka or Pakistan. Also warning of a “Trojan horse” – i.e., that the Beijing leadership, develops secretly of their political influence and the dependencies grow.
not all of the “Italy-First”policy, which the government of right-wing Lega and populist star followed the movement. However, Italy is at risk as a developed economy makes “significantly less” than other countries, of China, collected, assured the head of government, Giuseppe Conte.
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But there are also skeptics. Vice-head of government Matteo Salvini stressed that Italy wanted to be not a Chinese “colony”. During XI’s visit in Italy the duration of the present Salvini was not even looking. (By Lena Klimkeit, Annette Reuther and Andreas Landwehr, dpa)