A collection of 122 posts
Russian news agency Ria Novosti has reported that Hungary will start repaying a loan to Russia of EUR 9 billion for the Paks nuclear power facility investment in 2031, five years later than the original 2026 deadline. The delay might mean that new reactor units may not be nearing completion
Poland’s relationship with China has undergone a significant shift in recent years. Yet the economic opportunities that were supposed to come with a closer partnership have not materialized. Below, we look into the causes. A very sensitive issue: 5G Poland, where Huawei has been operating since 2004, is where
The European Commission has now received 13 national plans for how EU countries plan on spending pandemic recovery funds from the EU, which has allotted EUR 672.5 – roughly half grants, half loans – to help economies recover and foster zero-carbon public investment projects. While such plans have been received from
Budapest Airport, the Chinese Henan Airport Group, and the Chinese-Hungarian business and logistics development company, CECZ/Utlink, have signed a cooperation agreement aimed at establishing an “aerial Silk Road” between Hungary and China. The deal is expected to bring important economic opportunities and foster a significant expansion of air freight
It’s said that when times are tough one knows who their friends are. For Greece, it was Chinese interests (and credit) that came to the rescue of an economy that had been on the brink of disaster, and investment by China into a Greek port has turned it into
Despite the significant increase in China’s contribution to the Serbian economy in the last decade, EU countries’ investments in Serbia largely outperform those of the Asian economic powerhouse. Here’s how FDI from China is influencing Belgrades’ trade priorities, but outstanding questions over Serbia’s 5G rollout could make
While Czechia has shown signs of interest in growing trade and cooperation with China, at the same time Prague is the loudest critic of Huawei in the region and is likely to continue to follow Brussels’ lead related to any further US-China trade disputes. 5G: A voice critical of Huawei
After an agreed takeover deal for Hungarian insurance company Aegon, a blocking of the transaction between Dutch Aegon and VIG in Austria has led to diplomatic tensions with Austria, the Netherlands, and the EU. Both Austria and the Netherlands have issued complaints about Hungary restricting the free flow of capital
Similar to its welcoming approach to Russia, Hungary’s government is greeting Chinese economic and trade interests with open arms – despite openly expressed concerns by its allies in Brussels and the West. 5G: whose technology? Despite pressure from the US not to do so, Hungary has welcomed Huawei’s participation
A global trade war between the US and China may turn Central & Eastern Europe (CEE) into a battleground. The region, which has become a springboard for Chinese expansion, is now torn between its political and security allegiances to the US and its hunger for fresh capital. In the last
The incumbent Bulgarian leader, Boyko Borissov, and his party, GERB, stumbled in the elections that took place on 4 April. For the prime minister, this meant losing his grip on the government after almost a decade of ruling the poorest EU member state. Three weeks after the inconclusive elections, the
In an op-ed for Euobserver, Attila Steiner, secretary of state for circular economy, energy and climate at the Ministry of Innovation and Technology describes Hungary’s position in the climate politics with the following sentence: “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em’ – and when you do so, try to
Given the countries’ geographical proximity to one another, Slovak-Russian relations are a mixed bag, characterized by energy dependence on the one hand, and low-level trade on the other. Their luke-warm ties are underpinned by Bratislava’s sometimes firm, sometimes flexible stance toward Moscow. Slovakia was formerly a part of Czechoslovakia
Russian energy ties in Serbia and Moscow’s support to Belgrade vis a vis Kosovo add up to Serbia not intending to give up on its partnership with Russia very easily, despite its keenness on moving ahead with EU accession talks. But Serbia’s president appears to be getting closer
Moscow has used Hungary as a gateway to the EU and consistently uses Russian finances to maintain the goodwill of the Orbán government. During the decades of the Cold War, Hungary was heavily dependent on the Soviet Union, both economically and politically. However, this has changed following the political transition