Italy Officially Informs China of Exit from Belt & Road Initiative

The government of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has officially informed China that it will exit the Belt and Road Initiative.

This move will give a new blow to Beijing's ambition to expand the scope of the huge investment initiative.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Wednesday that the Belt and Road Initiative “did not produce the desired results” and is no longer a priority, adding that countries that did not participate in the agreement achieved better results.

Meloni has been paving the way diplomatically for months to end her country's participation in the initiative. Italy was the only G7 country to join the agreement launched a decade ago to strengthen economic ties and expand the influence of the world's second-largest economy.

Italy, like most European countries, has found itself in conflict amid escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing, which have been exacerbated by China's support for Russia since its invasion of Ukraine.

The announcement comes as European Union leaders are scheduled to visit China with the message that time is running out for Beijing to address its list of economic grievances before the bloc is forced to respond.

Italy's participation, which began in 2019, was scheduled to end on March 22, and it had until the end of the year to decide whether to renew its participation or not.

China's initiative to boost infrastructure and global trade has attracted an estimated $1 trillion in the past decade since its launch in 2013, but momentum has waned in recent years as the pandemic and China's slowdown disrupt the global economy. Beijing has also faced accusations of being an irresponsible lender that pushes countries into default.