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The Belt and Road Initiative Challenges for Central and Eastern European Transition Countries

In this paper, the Belt and Road Initiative is discussed as a possible challenge for Central and Eastern European transition countries. Former socialist countries in Central and Eastern Europe accepted their chance to remove the iron curtain, the physical and mental boundary dividing Europe into two separate political blocks from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the so called Cold War in 1991. The research questions are: (1) Is it possible to use Belt and Road Initiative for improving Central and Eastern Europe Countries economic development? (2) How can European Union membership influence the cooperation between single country and Belt and Road Initiative? The methods used for this research are primarily literature analysis and synthesis of different opinions. Statistical data and information, regarding bilateral cooperation between two countries in Belt and Road Initiative, were used for answering the research questions. Significance of research questions is very high, especially if any correlation between development and Initiative can be established. Furthermore, position of former transition countries, within European Union can show how the Initiative is useful for bilateral relationship. If research shows that Initiative is useful for transitional countries, even if they are already European Union members, conclusion can lead to the necessity of cooperation between Belt and Road Initiative and European Union as more formal initiative.

Belt and Road Initiative, transition

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