NATO in deep water because of Chinese port investments
By Laurens Groeneveld, Maria Pankowska, | 18 October, 2022
Port terminals in European cities such as Gdynia, Rotterdam and Antwerpen-Zeebrugge are crucial logistic hubs for the arrival of US Armed Forces and equipment for the protection of NATO’s flank in Eastern Europe. An investigation by The Investigative Desk in cooperation with OKO.press and FRONTSTORY.PL shows how large-scale investments by Chinese companies in these ports may compromise NATO’s response capabilities.
Gdynia, along with Rotterdam and Antwerpen-Zeebrugge, is part of a network of European ports with which the US Armed Forces has a special agreement to serve as arrival points for military equipment and soldiers. As recently as in mid-September, the famous USS Kearsarge amphibious assault ship docked in Gdynia for maintenance and logistical purposes.
But just when the US military is looking to greatly expand its presence in Europe, the usability of these ports has come into question. Increased investment in these key ports by Chinese companies creates risks of espionage, increasing economic dependence and the presence of Chinese naval vessels, especially since China is maintaining increasingly close relations with Russia.
The full article was published in Vsquare (in English), OKO.press (in Polish) and Frontstory.pl (in Polish) on October 18th, 2022. Laurens Groeneveld was invited on BNR News Radio, a Dutch radio show, to talk about the investigation. Listen to the conversation (in Dutch).
More investigations
Goliath vs. David: The race to the EU defense money
The war in Ukraine has unveiled a new threat to Europe’s security: Russia’s deployment of hypersonic missiles. With their unparalleled speed and maneu
The Investigative Desk Newsletter special edition July 2023
Read the full newsletter here. Dear readers, In this special edition we present you two major stories we just published. An international team,
Big Tobacco’s Beyond Nicotine Strategy
The past few years, the four biggest tobacco companies (Philip Morris International/Altria, British American Tobacco, Japan Tobacco International and
Why Europe is failing to provide Ukraine with sufficient ammunition
Since the February 2022 invasion, Ukraine’s five main military partners alone (US, Germany, UK, Poland, and the Netherlands) pledged more than 60 bill
The Investigative Desk Newsletter Q2 2023
Read the full newsletter here. Dear reader, This time, we bring you two stories and a book. Our editor Tim Luimes investigated the lobbying activitie
Chemicals lobby moves full steam ahead to undermine pfas ban
Europe wants to ban all pfas at once. The chemical industry is lobbying for the exemption of fluoropolymers. These substances, a type of plastics, are
