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China-EU relations
ChinaDiplomacy

Italy tells China it will terminate belt and road agreement, eliminating G7 participation

  • Move by Rome follows campaign pledge by new Italian PM Meloni, who has been critical of Beijing
  • Italy was one of 148 countries to have signed a memomorandum of understanding that it would participate in the infrastructure programme

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A woman walks in the venue of the Belt and Road forum in Beijing in October. Italy has withdrawn from the China-led investment plan, four years after becoming the only G7 nation to sign up. Photo: AFP
Finbarr Berminghamin Brussels
Italy has formally told the Chinese government that it has decided to end its membership of the Belt and Road Initiative, leaving China’s flagship infrastructure drive without any G7 members.

A diplomatic note was delivered to Beijing three days ago on behalf of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, explaining that Rome would not renew a memorandum of participation.

The 2019 memorandum authorising Italy’s belt-and-road participation expires in March 2024, and if Rome did not give written warning of a decision to pull out three months ahead of time, it would have automatically renewed for a further five years.

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Security tight in Chinese capital as foreign leaders arrive for Belt and Road Forum in Beijing

Security tight in Chinese capital as foreign leaders arrive for Belt and Road Forum in Beijing

First reported on by the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, with multiple Western news outlets subsequently relaying the news, the note also said that Italy wanted to “maintain a strategic friendship with China”.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani appeared to confirm the news at an event in Rome on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported. Tajani said Italy’s participation “has not produced the desired effects” and is no longer “a priority”, adding that non-participants have had “better results” than Italy.

The exit has been the subject of great speculation in recent months. Far-right leader Meloni vowed to leave the initiative when campaigning for office, describing the decision to sign up as “a mistake”, but has attempted to handle the departure delicately lest Beijing retaliate.

Italy was one of 148 countries to have signed a memorandum of understanding that it would participate in the infrastructure programme, which has been one of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature initiatives.

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