"China's Great Wall Across the Heart of Europe"

If you're like me, the first thing you thought of when you saw the headline was the Hajnal line.
From InfoGalactic:

The Hajnal line is a border that links Saint Petersburg, Russia and Trieste, Italy. In 1965, John Hajnal discovered it divides Europe into two areas characterized by different levels of nuptiality. To the west of the line, marriage rates and thus fertility were comparatively low and a significant minority of women married late or remained single; to the east of the line and in the Mediterranean and select pockets of Northwestern Europe, early marriage was the norm and high fertility was countered by high mortality....

Or maybe I was thinking of the Three Seas Initiative.

From ZeroHedge:

"The original Great Wall is a long brick structure that was built to keep northern barbarians out of China during ancient times," a new alarming report in Nikkei Asian Review detailing China's 'new Great Wall' rising in the heart of Europe recalls, but "The modern-day Great Wall in Europe is economic." 

Beijing is waging an impressive influence campaign, complete with English-speaking news channels beamed across the Balkans, to "reach out to ex-Communist countries on the periphery of the EU," the report finds, as well as playing host to major China-East European economic summits in places like Dubrovnik, Croatia — site of a major annual conference last April, attended by no less than 17 European countries, including 12 members of the European Union.

And in other Balkan countries like Serbia, still reeling from the 1999 US-NATO bombing of Belgrade and later US-recognition of Kosovo independence, state-owned Chinese companies are active and on the rise.

According to the Nikkei report, "There is a cold calculation behind China's recent move into Europe" — namely, a move to poach struggling former Communist countries, luring them with major Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) contracts as an 'alternative' to Western investment.....MORE

We've mentioned the Three Seas Initiative a few times:

Poland's Plan To Dominate Europe, III: Here Comes China

Okay, I'll stop the "Dominate Europe" schtick.

In addition to the North-South Three Seas commerce route (below) there is something else going on that has grabbed the attention of the eurocrats....

Poland's Plan to Dominate Europe II

That headline just cracks me up. As mentioned in one of the earlier posts, what Poland really wants is to just be left alone to sort out their own stuff  but like any humor there is a grain of truth to it.

And because of Poland's history the people have an almost genetically endowed talent for punching far above their weight-class (smaller population than California) in the diplomacy/strategy game.

First up in geopolitics ithe Intermarium or Three Seas Initiative, sort of Eastern Europe's version of the One Belt One Road plan:

Geopolitical Futures, 7/7/2017

If interested see also:
"Sizing up Chinese Investments in Europe"
"China establishes yet another freight train route to Europe that is over 7,000 miles long"
"China’s strategic investments in Europe: The case of maritime ports"
Pepe Escobar — Why Europe is afraid of the New Silk Roads
A Tale of Two Cities: Hamburg and Lubeck—Lessons in Trade, Geography and Urbanism

And probably related:
"EU Trade Deficit With China Destined To Grow "
"In Europe's east, a border town strains under China's Silk Road train boom"
"China’s belt and road cargo to Europe under scrutiny as operator admits to moving empty containers"
China's Belt and Road Plan Is Destroying the World
Poland's Plan To Dominate Europe, III: Here Comes China
How Turkey, Iran, Russia and India are playing the New Silk Roads (hint: think Syria)
"China Launches First Freight Train to Britain"