Concerns about the eagerness of CEE nations to partner with China have often led to it being dubbed ‘a Chinese Trojan horse’ being bought ‘on the cheap’.
MapinfluenCE analyst Alicja Bachulska recently argued that while these concerns seemed legitimate at the onset of the 17+1 initiative, repeating these assertions at present is out of step with reality.
The CEE region did go through a brief, albeit intense, ‘romance’ with China. There was a time when some governments in the region thought of using cooperation with Beijing as leverage in negotiations with Brussels….After a couple of years of rapprochement, most CEE states have realised that strengthening ties with China was not a ‘win-win’ strategy.
Bachulska on the shifting CEE-China dynamic
