Connectivity Interrupted: The Future of China’s presence in CEE after Russia’s Invasion in Ukraine

The Latvian Institute of International Affairs (LIIA) and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung in Baltic states in cooperation with the International Centre for Policy Studies, ICPS (Ukraine), held the discussion: "Connectivity Interrupted: The Future of China's presence in CEE after Russia's Invasion in Ukraine" that took place on January 26. 

From the early 2010s on, China became visible in Europe with its connectivity cooperation agenda. The Cooperation of China and Central and Eastern European Countries (CEE) held a key role in the narrative surrounding China-led Eurasian economic connections, such as, most visibly, the Belt and Road Initiative. However, gradually the hopes associated with China began to decrease, and the risks came to the forefront. After Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, even less options remain for China’s presence in CEE. The panel will discuss what to make of this decade of exchanges and what developments to expect in the future.

Discussion participants:

• Dr. Nickolay Kapitonenko, Associate Professor at the Institute of International Relations of Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University;
• Dr. Maximilian Mayer, Junior-Professor of International Relations and Global Politics of Technology at the University of Bonn.

Dr. Una Aleksandra Bērziņa-Čerenkova, Head of the Asia programme at the LIIA and Head of the China Study center at Riga Stradiņš University, will moderate the discussion.