Relationship dossier
People's Republic of China
Italy
Relationship assessment
China–Italy ties combine economic and diplomatic cooperation with disagreements over the Belt and Road Initiative and strategic priorities.
People's Republic of China toward Italy
+10China has engaged Italy through a bilateral strategic partnership and cooperation under the 2019 Belt and Road memorandum. Italy’s later withdrawal from that memorandum marked a setback in this cooperative agenda.
Italy toward People's Republic of China
+5Italy pursued economic cooperation with China through its 2019 Belt and Road memorandum, then withdrew from it in 2023. Italy continues to conduct bilateral relations within its broader European and transatlantic policy framework.
Overall relationship
+10The relationship has a durable diplomatic and economic dimension, including a strategic partnership and bilateral cooperation initiatives. Italy’s entry into and subsequent withdrawal from the Belt and Road memorandum illustrate both willingness to cooperate and limits imposed by changing policy priorities. The relationship is mixed rather than a sustained close partnership.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
China and Italy have pursued diplomatic and economic cooperation, including a strategic partnership and Italy’s 2019 memorandum on cooperation with China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The relationship also reflects disagreements over the initiative: Italy later withdrew from the memorandum, while broader concerns about trade and strategic alignment remain relevant. Their ties are mixed, with concrete cooperation but no basis for describing them as a close partnership.
Areas of tension
- Italy’s withdrawal from the 2019 Belt and Road memorandum marked a disagreement over the scope and value of bilateral cooperation.
Key developments
China and Italy established a strategic partnership.
Italy and China signed a memorandum on cooperation under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Italy withdrew from the Belt and Road memorandum and notified China of its decision.
Major uncertainties
- The scale and implementation of bilateral economic cooperation after Italy’s withdrawal from the Belt and Road memorandum are unclear.
- The extent to which trade and strategic differences have affected other bilateral cooperation is uncertain.