Relationship dossier
People's Republic of China
Montenegro
Relationship assessment
Infrastructure cooperation, alongside concerns over the Bar–Boljare highway loan
People's Republic of China toward Montenegro
+30China provided financing through the Export-Import Bank of China for the Bar–Boljare highway and Chinese companies undertook construction work. China and Montenegro also signed a Belt and Road cooperation framework in 2017.
Montenegro toward People's Republic of China
+25Montenegro accepted Chinese-backed financing for the Bar–Boljare highway and joined a Belt and Road cooperation framework with China in 2017, reflecting concrete government-led economic engagement.
Overall relationship
+20The relationship has a substantive economic foundation in Chinese financing and construction connected with Montenegro’s Bar–Boljare highway, reinforced by a 2017 cooperation framework. Financial concerns associated with the highway loan and Montenegro’s EU and NATO orientation complicate, but do not erase, this cooperation.
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 Montenegro have pursued substantive economic cooperation, notably through China-backed financing and construction for Montenegro’s Bar–Boljare highway and a 2017 Belt and Road cooperation framework. The relationship also carries financial and strategic complications: the highway loan contributed to concern about Montenegro’s debt exposure, while Montenegro’s EU and NATO orientation differs from China’s geopolitical priorities.
Areas of tension
- Concerns about Montenegro’s debt exposure associated with the Chinese-backed Bar–Boljare highway loan.
Key developments
Montenegro accepted financing from China’s Export-Import Bank for the Bar–Boljare highway project.
China and Montenegro signed a Belt and Road cooperation framework.
Major uncertainties
- The current status and terms of Chinese-backed infrastructure cooperation are unclear.
- The extent of implementation of the 2017 cooperation framework is unclear.