The final Croatian decision regarding the Chinese consortium China Road and Bridge Corporation as the contractor for the construction of the Pelješac Bridge seems to be an announcement of a global spring offensive in the eastern Adriatic. This primarily concerns the competition between the USA and Russia. However, Turkey, which brings along other Islamic capital, has also been an important competitor for years, as has the official European Union, which provides funding for the project but, due to the questionable political-energy flirting between Germany and Russia, namely Merkel and Putin, it is sometimes uncertain whom it truly supports – the USA or Russia. Now, China is also involved.
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China has significant investment and construction ambitions in the Adriatic – Baltic – Black Sea corridor, just as there are major plans for infrastructure (energy and transport) projects under the strategic leadership of the USA that aim to more firmly connect that part of Europe and free it from Russian monopoly in gas supply (a network of LNG terminals and pipelines). Such a more integrated post-communist Europe would serve as a security barrier against the East and the Eurasian ambitions of Russia, China, and Turkey.
Pelješac Bridge – a gateway to the EU
The ground is already being prepared for a meeting between the American and Russian presidents, which is why both are ‘building up’ their positions. Their meeting will be an attempt to agree on transitioning to a new phase of compromise, and in the shadow of global power struggles, a political-business battle for the Adriatic is currently underway. In this, besides the USA, the EU, and Russia, Turkey and China are also participating.
By winning the tender for the Pelješac Bridge, China has gained a business entry ticket to the opposing camp. However, in politics and business, nothing is black and white and entirely simple. For China, this is important because it has broken the psychological barrier of winning tenders for projects co-financed by the EU. The Union has shown, on a small example, that it does not discriminate against Chinese companies in its tenders. Croatia received the cheapest offer, but also a significant obligation to ensure quality control over the construction so that a good bridge remains behind the builders. Nothing more, nothing less.
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And no one, not even Croatia, should forget the prophetic words of the former head of the Chinese state and the Communist Party Jiang Zemin, who, in response to criticisms that he was impoverishing China by rapidly opening it to the West in the 1990s, said: ‘The West will profit from this for the next five years, and we for the next five hundred.’ However, the final awarding of the construction of the Pelješac Bridge to the Chinese was merely an announcement of a global offensive. On a national level, the Council for Electronic Media has granted permission for Slovenia Broadband, a company within the American fund KKR, to take over one hundred percent of the shares of the company Nove TV. One of KKR’s key people for strategic investments in Europe is the former head of the CIA, General David H. Petraeus.
The intensity of the special war is also indicated by the fact that in efforts to prevent that television takeover (for Russian interests), ‘informed’ sources leaked information that the former head of the CIA is actually a small player – of the Serbian lobby. Immediately following this, the decision of the Croatian state leadership to purchase Israeli fighter jets was made, which confirms Croatia’s strategic alignment with the USA and strengthens the trilateral relationship between Croatia – Israel – USA.
Spring power struggle
Globally, the expulsion of Russian diplomats in a large part of the European Union member states, in solidarity with Great Britain after the poisoning of Russian spy Sergei Skripal, has shown that the USA and Great Britain, as the American commissioner for European affairs, continue to dominate in leading the Union’s foreign policy. An incident with Serbia has been provoked in Kosovo; it would not be surprising if similar incidents occur in BiH, Montenegro, and Macedonia in the coming days. Because the spring power struggle of the USA, Russia, and also the episodic players has evidently begun.
Some signals from the Russian milieu indicate that a meeting between Trump and Putin in Croatia is possible. It is quite possible that this was the reason for the President’s invitation to Putin for a reciprocal visit and agreement with the Prime Minister about it. Finally, about something. This could be a significant promotion for Croatia.
In this global clash, it can be dangerous for Croatia to misunderstand the game, misread the messages, and consequently make moves to its own detriment. No, the expulsion of diplomats does not mean that Russia and the USA will now enter a war with nuclear warheads, but rather that the ground is being prepared for a meeting between the American and Russian presidents Trump and Putin, which is why both are ‘building up’ their positions. Their meeting in the ‘not so distant future,’ as Trump announced, will certainly not mean that Trump will chase Putin with a tomahawk and that Putin will drown Trump in icy Siberian waters, but that they will try to negotiate a transition to a new phase of relations, some compromise of interests.
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And, no, it is not impossible for that meeting to take place in Croatia, about which some signals are coming from the Russian milieu these days. It is quite possible that this was the reason for the President’s invitation to Putin for a reciprocal visit and agreement with the Prime Minister about it. Finally, about something. This could be a significant promotion for Croatia. And, yes, it is wrong to expect that Trump and Putin’s priority is ‘let’s do something for those Croats so they are no longer so foolish and self-destructive.’
