China's virus diplomacy has limited pull in Balkans

Significance

China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects in the Balkans have mostly failed to deliver on promises of improving infrastructure. Chinese prestige in the region now relies more on 'vaccine diplomacy', supplying doses to those countries that have slipped behind in the race to inoculate their populations against COVID-19.

Impacts

• Bosnia, Hungary, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey have obtained or are exploring Chinese or Russian supplies of vaccines.
• Albania is wary of non-Western vaccines but is voicing concern at the lack of solidarity from its allies.
• Governments will seek to source vaccines where they can for fear of suffering domestic political damage if they are seen as dilatory.