(photo) A schematic of Belt and Road
Estonia will reject a Chinese-funded project to build a Baltic undersea tunnel with Finland. The tunnel is one of the projects of China's Belt and Road initiative and, if implemented, will be the world's longest undersea tunnel.
The planned undersea tunnel, which is 100 kilometers long, runs through the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and the Finnish capital, Helsinki.
The European website Politico by the American Political News Network reported on July 31 that the Estonian minister of Public Administration (Jaak Aab) said in an email :" Based on the current state of knowledge of the national authorities, we have reason to doubt whether the project can be implemented on the basis of environmental, economic and security factors. "
Estonia government not elaborate on security considerations for rejecting the investment, but mentioned that there would be "additional expenditures for the development and maintenance of national defence forces. "
The government of Estonia said it would consult directly with the Finnish government to develop an alternative tunnel construction plan.
For China, the programme is part of a large-scale Belt and Road initiative, as is the creation of a freight link to the Arctic, but Estonia government that the financial planning for the undersea tunnel project is "unclear" and that the project "has many reasons not in the public interest ".
According to Politico reports, China Railway International Group, China Railway Engineering Group Co., Ltd. and China Communications Construction Co., Ltd. and other Chinese companies, could have been contracted.
Belt and Road is China's ambitious economic initiative, but many analysts believe it is the core tool for China to advance its geopolitical ambitions,
Previously, China's Belt and Road program has suffered setbacks in some countries. More and more countries are scaling down Chinese investment or even canceling projects because of concerns that the Belt and Road plan may pose some major risks to their countries.
The United States Think Tank New American Security Center (Center for A New American Society) reported in April last year that these major risks include erosion of national sovereignty, lack of transparency, unsustainable debt burdens, disengagement from local economic needs, geopolitical risks, negative environmental impacts, and bribery and corruption ..(Agencies
The report assessed 10 projects in China in Europe, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia and Pacific island countries on a case-by-case basis, and found that these projects were all at risk.
