China’s railway investment in the first quarter hit its highest level since 2013 amid government efforts to boost the economy and expand infrastructure in Western border regions that are of ever-increasing security and economic importance.

Italy’s officially joining the China-led Belt and Road Initiative sparked a fierce debate. By analysing five fields of cooperation, the volume sheds light on whether the bilateral agreement has brought about an intensification of bilateral collaboration as wished by the Italian government as the time and whether the concerns around it have materialized.