Brussels unity in tatters: Baltic states snub EU on China summit and chose Biden alliance Steven Brown
Replay Video UP NEXT
Next week, Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to host the 17+1 summit in a bid to strengthen its ties with 17 Eastern European countries. The summit will focus on infrastructure investments and the Belt and Road Initiative.
At least 12 of these countries are inside the EU, with the bloc s member accustomed to acting in unison in a bid to exert power and influence.
But several Baltic states have confirmed neither their president nor prime minister will be attending, in a direct snub to President Jinping.
Xi Jinping profile (Image: Express)
While China has not provided any details of the summit, the Chinese mission to the EU revealed it has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
They said: Due the coronavirus pandemic, the [17+1] summit has been delayed from the original schedule last year. Preparatory work for the summit remains ongoing. At present, we are in constant communication with all sides regarding the summit s arrangement.
Estonia s Foreign Minister Eva-Maria Liimets (Image: Getty)
This week, an international relations expert warned China is eager to secure backers in central and eastern Europe amid concerns the Chinese regime is trying to divide Europe in two.
Hazara murders highlight mounting attacks on Chinese projects in Pakistan
By
Atul Aneja ( IANS) |
Published on
Mon, Jan 11 2021 20:48 IST |
0 Views
New Delhi, Jan 11 : Amid escalating attacks on Chinese projects in Pakistan, the brutal killing of 11 Hazara coal mine workers by the Islamic State (IS) terror group may have focused on Bostan, the site chosen for a Special Economic Zone under the second phase of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The coal miners belonging to the ethnic Hazara community were killed in Mach, 100 km south of Bostan.
IS, which has claimed responsibility for the attack, has been violently opposing CPEC. In May 2017, the group kidnapped two Chinese nationals from Quetta, and announced their killing the following month. That incident halted the free movement of Chinese nationals in Quetta city.
Are Saudi Arabia and Pakistan untying the knot?
Diplomatic relations between the two countries are strained as multiple issues threaten established political alliances in the Gulf region. The row could result in new allies in the Far East.
The recent visit by the Indian chief-of-staff to Saudi Arabia has marked not only a major step in the countries military dialogue but more so, it has sent a strong signal to nearby Pakistan: Riyadh s politics bear undeniable signs of increasingly becoming a balancing act between India and Pakistan.
The meeting marked another milestone in increasingly tense relations between the Middle East economic superpower Saudi Arabia and its nuclear-equipped but financially inferior ally Pakistan.