Europe

NATO Allies Discuss Recovery of Chinese-Owned Infrastructure Projects in Europe

() – NATO officials are discussing taking steps to recover some Chinese-owned infrastructure projects in Europe in case a broader conflict with Russia breaks out in the east of the continent, three officials involved in the discussions told .

A decade ago, when Europe was still emerging from the economic crater caused by the global financial crisis, the promise of infrastructure financing from Chinese-owned investment firms seemed like a windfall.

Now, with the biggest land war fought in Europe since World War II – and with the West warning about Beijing’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – NATO countries see those investments as a liability, and allies are beginning to discuss ways to bring back some of those projects, officials said.

The fear, according to a US official, is that Beijing could use the infrastructure it has in Europe to provide material assistance to Russia if the conflict expands. The goal, officials say, is to determine a path forward well in advance of any potential conflict.

The discussions reflect a growing focus of the NATO alliance on China. The joint statement released Wednesday by the 32 leaders at the 75th anniversary summit in Washington strongly called for Beijing’s support for Moscow, in a move seen as a sign of progress by members eager to take a tougher stance. against Beijing after that reference was omitted in 2023.

“The deepening strategic partnership between Russia and the People’s Republic of China and their mutually reinforcing attempts to undermine and reshape the rules-based international order,” the statement said, “are of deep concern.”

According to three officials who participated in the talks, the infrastructure measures to be taken are still in their early stages and NATO member countries showed varying levels of participation. A NATO diplomat suggested that the United States, which is leading the talks, would have to conduct them bilaterally to secure the necessary support.

From railway lines connecting Eastern Europe with China to ports located in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, China has invested tens of billions of dollars in infrastructure under its Belt and Road Initiative, to which European nations They began to join in 2013.

A NATO official said that if war broke out, infrastructure “would almost certainly be nationalized, or nations would temporarily assume operational control, under emergency security measures. “China could sue them in court after the fact.”

U.S. officials see such acquisitions or sales as having precedent in moves by European nations to force Russia to sell assets following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. For more than a year, Finland repeatedly blocked the deal. Helsinki Shipyard (an icebreaking ship producer once owned by a Russian entity) until Russia, in late 2023, sold the company to a Canadian-based entity.

A senior U.S. official said discussions expanded beyond low-tech to also include high-tech interests, such as quantum computing, semiconductors and telecommunications infrastructure.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that the Ukraine war could be the reason European and Asian nations have become more aware that their security is linked to each other.

“Perhaps this was crystallized in Ukraine, when Prime Minister Kishida of Japan said that what happens in Europe today could happen in East Asia tomorrow. “When Russia committed its aggression, its renewed aggression against Ukraine, Japan stood up, South Korea stood up, Australia, New Zealand, this was a reflection of that recognition that these challenges are linked,” Blinken said at the NATO forum.

But while most NATO member states expressed some level of concern about Chinese-owned infrastructure, two officials involved in the discussions told that France in particular sought to move infrastructure discussions to the European Union, which has authority over other economic matters.

The tension from France and other countries, officials say, impacted the language of the statement, as countries argued that NATO is not the best platform from which to challenge China, but many member states still harbor very real fear. that Beijing can use hard assets against the alliance in the future, and continue to push for the alliance to defend itself against the threat.

Speaking in Washington in mid-June ahead of the summit, outgoing Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Beijing must face the consequences of its support for Russia on the battlefield in Ukraine.

–– ‘s Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.

Source link