That vessel has since sunk, scuppered by China’s support for Russia in the war in Ukraine and bitter disappointment over projects that never materialized.
Also capsized are many of the high hopes that took hold across Eastern and Central Europe for a bonanza of Chinese money.
So when Mr. Xi returns to the region this week, after a visit to France, he will travel to Serbia and Hungary, two countries whose long-serving authoritarian leaders still offer a haven for China in increasingly turbulent political and economic waters.
“The Czechs, the Poles and nearly everyone else are really pissed at China because of the war,” said Tamas Matura, a foreign relations scholar at Corvinus University of Budapest.
“But in Hungary that is not a problem, at least not for the government” of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Mr. Matura said.
Persons:
Xi Jinping, Europe’s, Xi, ”, Tamas Matura, Viktor Orban, Matura
Organizations:
Corvinus University of Budapest
Locations:
Czech Republic, Russia, Ukraine, Eastern, Central Europe, France, Serbia, Hungary, China, “