Italy tells China it is leaving the Belt and Road Initiative.

According to sources within the Italian government, Italy has officially told China that it is withdrawing from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The Italian government has dismissed concerns that the decision may undermine relations with China and the Italian economy.

Ignoring concerns from the United States that it would allow China to acquire control of sensitive technology and essential infrastructure, Italy became the first and so far only major Western nation to join the trade and investment program in 2019. This occurred in 2019.

However, when Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni assumed office the previous year, she stated that she desired to withdraw from the accord, which President Xi Jinping supported. She stated that the deal had not substantially benefited Italy from its implementation.

According to a source inside the Italian administration, Rome had sent Beijing a letter “in recent days” alerting China that it would not renew the deal. The conclusion of the 2019 treaty is scheduled to take place in March of 2024.

China did not immediately provide a remark on the matter.

“We have every intention of maintaining excellent relations with China even if we are no longer part of the Belt and Road Initiative,” according to a different government source.

“Other G7 nations have closer relations with China than we do, despite the fact they were never in (the BRI),” said the president.

By the year 2024, Italy will have taken over the chairmanship of the G7.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has operated since 2013. Since then, more than one hundred nations have signed agreements with China to collaborate on BRI infrastructure and development projects. When Giuseppe Conte, who was serving as Prime Minister of Italy at the time, signed the agreement in 2019, he had high hopes for a trade boom; instead, it appeared that Chinese companies were the primary benefactors.

Over the the previous year, Italy’s exports to China reached 16.4 billion euros, equivalent to 17.7 billion dollars. According to data from Italy, Chinese exports to Italy increased to 57.5 billion from 31.7 billion during the same time period. This constitutes a significant increase.

Despite the fact that they are not members of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which is modeled after the ancient Silk Road that connected China to the West, Italy’s primary commercial partners in the eurozone, France and Germany, sold a substantial amount more to China in the previous year.

Because of the desire to preserve strategic links, Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani took a trip to Beijing in September, and President Sergio Mattarella is scheduled to travel to China at some point in the next year.

There is no set date for Meloni’s trip to Beijing, despite the fact that she has expressed her desire to go there.

In spite of the fact that Rome is a member of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), successive governments in Rome have shown that they are skeptical of the accord by vetoing some proposed takeovers or restricting the influence that Chinese corporations have over their Italian counterparts.

By implementing “golden power” regulations in June, Meloni’s cabinet was able to limit the impact that Chinese stakeholder Sinochem (600500. SS) had on the Italian tiremaker Pirelli. These regulations were initially developed to safeguard key assets.

Meloni, who is in charge of a conservative coalition, has been eager to bolster her reputation as a dedicated pro-NATO leader. According to a government source, she expressed her confidence to Vice President Joe Biden of the United States early this year that Italy would withdraw from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).