China on Thursday criticized the “denigration” of its New Silk Road infrastructure project after Italy decided to withdraw from it.
“China firmly opposes the denigration and weakening of cooperation (around) the New Silk Roads, as well as confrontation and division,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said during a regular briefing.
The spokesman did not want to comment directly on Italy's decision, but stressed that more than 150 countries are involved in this project, launched in 2013 under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, and it is “the largest cooperation platform in the world.”
He recalled that Italy sent representatives to the New Silk Roads Forum in Beijing in October, which he said was evidence of the project's “tremendous appeal” and “global influence.”
Italy has withdrawn from the controversial New Silk Roads agreement with China four years after joining, a source within Giorgia Meloni's government said on Wednesday.
Beijing was told a few days ago that the decision to abandon this pharaonic sea and land infrastructure project had been expected for several months, according to the Italian daily Corriere della Sera.
Rome withdrew to “keep the channels of political dialogue open,” the government source told AFP.
Without directly confirming the news, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Wednesday that Italy was seeking a “revitalization of the strategic partnership” with Beijing.
In 2019, Italy, reeling under the weight of its national debt, became the only G7 country to participate in Beijing's massive investment program, described by its opponents as a Trojan horse to gain political influence.
This ambitious project worth 2000 billion dollars aims to improve trade links between Asia, Europe, Africa and even beyond through the construction of ports, railways, airports or industrial parks.
This program is also criticized internationally because of the dangerous debt it imposes on poor countries.