Georgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister, has vowed to “relaunch” the country’s relationship with China after exiting the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Meloni conducted meetings with Chinese leadership during her first visit to Beijing since taking office.
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Planning for the future
Italy’s leader and China’s Premier, Li Qiang, signed a three-year action plan to establish and grow their partnership.
Li’s office said it aims to increase “mutually beneficial cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises in the fields of shipbuilding, aerospace, new energy [and] artificial intelligence”.
One of Meloni’s goals is to shrink the gap between Italian investments in China and Chinese investments into Italy, which are a third of the former.
An international project
In 2019, Italy was the only G7 nation to join China’s BRI. It came under heavy scrutiny from its allies in the Western world.
The BRI is China’s flagship project to build infrastructure worldwide, grow trade and deepen its ties with other countries.
Critics fear that the policy creates debt traps that give China economic and political leverage in strategic locations. Western countries feel that the programme is an ambitious attempt to increase China’s influence on the global stage.
Italy joined under former prime minister Giuseppe Conte’s leadership. An investment influx at a time when Italy’s infrastructure was failing and recession was looming probably seemed enticing.
A balancing act
Meloni may be trying to balance Italy’s economic needs with her desire to establish herself as a core Western ally.
Her administration is Italy’s most right-wing government since the Second World War, raising scepticism regarding her commitment to Europe.
Despite leaving the BRI, having strong economic ties with China is still a priority. Opting for a bilateral relationship rather than being one of the many signatories of the BRI may be an attempt to signal a more equitable agreement.
At the same time, she is eager to remind the world of Italy’s commitment to NATO and political awareness of China. At the recent NATO summit, she warned of the dangers of China’s growing presence in Africa.
Can Meloni walk the political tightrope that is an economically close but politically distant relationship with China?
