Polish President Duda Visits China

Starting on Saturday 22 June, President Andrzej Duda of Poland will be paying a five-day state visit to China. While Duda meets his “old friend” Xi Jinping, several warning signs are pointing to a potential re-awakening of China’s cooperation with the broader CEE region under the 14+1 framework.

The 16+1 (or 14+1 to be precise) format for cooperation between China and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) has been long deemed a “zombie initiative” – one that failed to deliver on its economic promises and capitalise on the political goodwill of all parties involved.

Although over a decade ago, when the format was first established, China seemed convincing to local elites in its efforts to promote the idea of “win-win cooperation” – Beijing’s preferred slogan used extensively when reaching out to CEE – the momentum was lost by the end of the past decade.

However, China’s handling of the pandemic, the accelerating Sino-American rivalry, and, most recently, Beijing’s tacit approval for Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, have significantly worsened China’s image in many CEE states. This has also translated into the 16+1 platform becoming politically impotent, with three Baltic states abandoning the initiative, and others unwilling to host its annual summits and other related events.