Policy Brief: Responding to China's connectivity agenda in EU's Neighborhood: a Central European perspective

A Policy Brief on the appropriate response of Central European countries to China's expansion in the EU neighbourhood was produced during a study visit to the Brussels office of the Think Visegrad platform. The author of the paper, Jakub Jakóbowski, focuses on the possibilities of engaging Central Europe in the EU's global connectivity agenda, implemented under the Global Gateway initiative. He highlights links with the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership as an indispensable element of Central European connectivity.

Central Europe can bring an essential contribution to the EU's new global connectivity agenda, realized within the Global Gateway initiative. This includes first-hand engagement experiences within the China- led connectivity frameworks, such as 16+1 and BRI. The region should continue to involve EU institutions in the workings of the 16+1 format, applying pressure on China to adjust connectivity- related norms to EU standards. Central European EU member states should also leverage their existing participation in regional connectivity initiatives – such as the V4, the Three Seas Initiative, and various cross-Eurasian transport corridors – to build synergies with intra-EU and extra-EU connectivity initiatives. In a broader sense, transportation, energy, and digital links crossing into Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership are a natural extension and an indispensable element of Central European connectivity, demanding an active policy in this field.

The Policy Brief was prepared in the framework of the Think Visegrad programme.

The full policy paper can be found in English under the PDF button.