Polands relation to the Belt and Road Initiative: political, economic, infrastructural, and socio-cultural dimensions

The main goal of this chapter is to evaluate Poland's relation to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) during the past seven years (2013-2020) by examining the political, economic, infrastructural dimensions as well as the public relations behind this initiative. The BRI is a heterogeneous concept and its various modes of understandings that are present in the Polish debates will be introduced. The implications of the BRI will also be analyzed by the examples of the development of railway connection and e-commerce platforms, rise in trade exchange, bilateral political relations, as well as the 17+1 format of cooperation, and academic exchanges. Generally, the BRI is perceived not merely as an economical and infrastructural project, but also as a geopolitical attempt to expand Chinese influences around the globe. Since the beginning of the trade conflict between Washington and Beijing, the discussions on the BRI in Poland are held in a strong connection to the current state of Sino-American relations. Poland perceives the US as its most important military ally and a guarantor of safety and regional stability. In this chapter official as well as nonofficial sources will be examined, to present as accurately as possible various interpretations of the development of BRI, which affect practical decisions taken by the Polish policymakers.