Garčević Discusses Chinese Influence in Montenegro
On March 4, 2021, Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, took part in a panel discussion on China’s growing influence in Montenegro and the Balkans at large.
The event, titled “The Chinese Influence in Montenegro: A Threat or Opportunity,” was hosted by the Montenegrin think tank the Center for Democratic Transition with the support from the Center of the International Private Enterprise (CIPE), Europe and Eurasia Department.
In his remarks, Garčević theorized that the hybrid regimes from the region incline to cooperate with other hybrid regimes and replicate their governance/development model. He said cooperation with Beijing promotes a development and governance model that is in the stark contrast with the European Union (EU) concept of reforms, but it is functionally closer to political elites in the region. While regional leaders often utilize cooperation with China to maximize gains against Brussels, he stated that the current type of cooperation slows down their progress towards the EU membership.
Panelists concluded that Montenegro will be burdened by a large debt to China, which may put the country in the passive dependency to Beijing. The highway project caused the Montenegrin public debt to skyrocket. The debt, which is in the early 2021 estimated around $4.5 billion, reached 93% of the Montenegrin GDP, and China holds more than 25% of it.
A recording of the event can be viewed below.
During his diplomatic career, Ambassador Vesko Garčević dealt with issues pertinent to European security and NATO for almost 14 years. In 2004, he was posted in Vienna to serve as Ambassador to Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He had been a Montenegro’s Ambassador to NATO from 2010 until 2014 and served as a Montenegro’s National Coordinator for NATO from 2015 until he joined the faculty at the Pardee School. Learn more about Ambassador Garčević on his faculty profile.