Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni revealed Italy's strategy to withdraw from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the G20 summit, as reported by Italian media on Sunday.
To mitigate potential repercussions from Beijing, Italy intends to refocus on revitalizing a strategic partnership agreement with China, originally established in 2004 to promote economic cooperation.
Notably, Italy is the sole G7 country to have joined the BRI, a worldwide trade and infrastructure initiative inspired by the historical Silk Road connecting imperial China and the Western world.
The Corriere della Sera daily, in its report, said, “The prime minister (Meloni) communicated the intention to quit the project to her counterpart", to which Premier Li made a last attempt to persuade the Italians to rethink.
Italian politicians have expressed skepticism regarding the significance of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) agreement, signed by a prior administration in 2019. This agreement has generated tensions with Western allies who are concerned about the expansion of Chinese influence.
According to the report, Italian officials clarified to the Chinese that their decision to withdraw from the BRI was not influenced by the United States. Similar sentiments have been echoed in reports by other Italian newspapers.
Italy, set to assume the G7 presidency in the upcoming year, aims to reshape its ties with Beijing as a means to appease its Western allies.
Meloni and Li engaged in discussions at the G20 summit in New Delhi on Saturday to explore the possibilities of strengthening their relationship, as stated by Meloni's office.
“Italy and China share a Global Strategic Partnership whose 20th anniversary will recur next year and which will be the beacon for the advancement of friendship and cooperation … in every area of common interest,” the statement after their meeting said.
