Poland is pulling a Trump maneuver and is trying to use economic coercion to get China to pressure Russia on Ukraine. Such maneuvers haven’t worked for Trump (his 50 percent tariff on India has been a disaster) and it won’t work for Poland. From Moon of Alabama at moonofalabama.org:
Over the last decade China developed the longest railway in the world running more than 8,000 miles from the east coast of China to Spain.
The line crosses China, Russia, Belarus and Poland before splitting up into various European connections.
Over the last year the railway has carried goods between China and Europe at a value of about $25 billion.
The line is now blocked:
Poland’s decision to close its border with Belarus in response to thequadrennial Zapad-2025 military exercises and Russian drone incursion on September 10 has abruptly severed one of the fastest-growing trade arteries between China and the EU.
…
The impact of the closure of the Belarusian border is significant. The land corridor already represents 3.7% of all EU–China trade, up from 2.1% a year earlier. While that share remains small compared to seaborne shipments, its importance lies in speed and reliability.
…
Poland’s government underlined that the decision was driven by security imperatives rather than economics. Warsaw stated that “the logic of trade” was being replaced by “the logic of security,” underscoring the geopolitical risks attached to the Belt and Road corridors.
The Zapad-2025 military exercises is long over but Poland continues to block the railroad.
