(ANSA-AP) - BELGRADE, 11 APR - Construction of infrastructure
such as power plants, mobile networks and bridges is booming
throughout cash-strapped countries in central and eastern Europe
thanks to Chinese funding, which has the European Union
scrambling to counter Beijing's mounting influence.
Croatia is hosting a summit on Thursday for 16 European
countries with developing economies and China. The gathering in
Dubrovnik focuses on expanding business and other links between
China and a region it sees as a gateway to Europe.
The countries that endorsed China's global "Belt and Road"
initiative already have seen billions of dollars in investments.
Eleven are EU members.
Western leaders worry economic weight could give China
political muscle in the region, and about projects funded with
Chinese investments adhering to lower environmental and other
standards than the EU's. (ANSA-AP).
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