In March 2019, Italy became the first large economy to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – an infrastructure funding program to connect the trade routes of Asia with Africa and Europe.

The non-binding agreement, besides signaling other opportunities for investment, designates some of Italy’s ports to BRI trade routes, which could bring funding for infrastructure projects.

The signing is controversial because many believe the BRI is a political project to build global Chinese influence through foreign investment. For this reason, Italy’s pro-China stance has drawn wide criticism from other large Western economies, particularly those in the European Union (EU).