China’s $17 billion plan for a Canal across Europe

In 2013, China announced its Belt and Road Initiative for the first time. Since then, the country has been spearheading a staggering amount of mega-investments across the entire planet. One of these investments is a potential game-changing project in the Balkans: The Danube-Morava-Vardar/Axios canal. Estimated to cost around 17 billion USD, it would be one of China’s most costly single projects and could change the geopolitical and geoeconomic value of the region forever.

This canal would connect the Danube river directly with the Mediterranean sea, thus presenting a new waterway which could be used to simply bypass the until now crucial Turkish Straits. In this video, we’ll take a look at China’s reasons behind the project, its negotiations with Serbia, North Macedonia and Greece, and also its impact in the region and beyond.

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Music:

Allemande (by Wahneta Meixsell)
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Timestamps:

0:00 Introduction
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Sources:

Arsim Ejupi (2018)The idea of Morava-Vardar water canal and its long-term geopolitical context. In: GeoScape, 12(2), 84-91.

Dragan Dunčić, Jelena Lukić (2013) The Project to Construct the Danube-Morava-Vardar-Aegean Canal

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#china #balkans #geopolitics

[ArkenTheAmerikan]

"To show you the power of China, I sawed the Balkans in half!"

[מ.מ-הד]

What's Turkey is doing is exactly what YouTube is doing with the ads and the YouTube premium.

[masonwhite]

Theres always some damned thing in the Balkans

[felixtheswiss]

It seems nobody takes mountains seriously anymore.

[bobmantheawesome]

Finally, I can sail from greece to belgium by going across the continent

[Dattemp]

I like that Serbia’s coat of arms doubles as an eyepatch

[ncrvako]

as a greek living in those areas, the plan is a double edge sword for various reasons, like ecological disasters vs more jobs for the area, or trade benefits vs posible miscalculations that could ruin the area.
Also, i think that Austria-Hungary cov had the same idea but because of cost + war issues had not achieved this.

[greekmapper]

Welcome to the balkans, we don't live, we survive

[abelnicolae]

Three balkan states agreeing on something and working together? 😁 This project is already doomed.

[flagflow]

I'm from Balkans and this is the first time that I hear about this.

[Sava.S]

As a Serbian it would be sad to destroy Vardar in North Macedonia and Morava in Serbia because they are really beautiful, Serbia already has sea access thru Montenegro and we can buy ports from Greece for much less money, but as a power play and economic investment it's a great plan

[mbvbm]

Quality is on the same level as channels with millions of subs. Great video

[sargylion]

North Europeans: dont invest in the Balkans

*China: Fine... I 'll do it myself*

[crkcrk]

Turkey is repeating its mistake. Last time it blocked trafic between Europe and China, Europe discovered America. This time China will find its way by constructing a 823 km canal

[sanskrit]

Europe: Serbia we will take your sea again
Serbia: Then I will bring sea to me!

[angrycabbage]

9:15 "Spend more money in Gyros" Average Greek every day

[mvfc]

The Morava River in Serbia is quite a wild river and has been difficult to tame.

[ekin]

Another very well made video. Congratulations on a job well done, moruk!

[kinnay]

your illustrations look better each video !

[ninny]

"Another state owned another state owned another state owned"