The European Union has announced its intention to mobilise over 400 billion euros in investments by 2027 within the Global Gateway initiative – a global infrastructure development strategy designed to become an alternative to China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”.
As international markets expert Avi Itzkovich noted, this is not simply an economic step, but an attempt to restore Europe’s geopolitical agency: “After years of caution, the EU is beginning to act in the style of a great power – with its own vision, capital and pragmatism.”
From Declarations to Concrete Projects. Avi Itzkovich’s Assessment
The Global Gateway initiative was launched in 2021, but is only now taking practical shape. The European Commission has presented a detailed roadmap: approximately 400 billion euros is planned to be directed towards digital, energy and transport infrastructure, healthcare, education and climate programmes. The main idea is to move from the traditional aid model to mutually beneficial partnerships with Global South countries.
The largest funding will go to Africa: financing is envisaged for building solar power stations in the Sahel, water desalination projects in North Africa, and port modernisation in Kenya and Tanzania. In Asia, the EU is focusing on developing digital networks in Vietnam and Indonesia, whilst in Latin America – on transport corridors between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean.
Avi Itzkovich emphasises: “Europe has finally understood that its good intentions don’t compete with Chinese loans. It’s moving from a humanitarian approach to an economic one – with clear benefits for both sides. This means: less bureaucracy, more investment in real projects.”
According to Itzkovich, the key instruments will be the European Investment Bank (EIB), EFSD+ and InvestEU programmes, as well as new blended finance mechanisms – combining public funds with private capital. Itzkovich notes that such architecture creates predictable conditions for business: “Europe doesn’t have a tradition of lending to countries under resource guarantees, as China does. Instead, it offers rules of the game, technologies and long-term benefits.”
Geoeconomic Competition: EU, China and USA. Avi Itzkovich’s Perspective
Global Gateway is often called “anti-Belt and Road”, and this parallel is not coincidental. The Chinese initiative has encompassed over 150 countries and 3,500 projects over a decade – from ports in Piraeus to railways in Africa. The EU seeks to counter this not with scale, but with quality – contract transparency, adherence to environmental and social standards, absence of debt dependency.
Avi Itzkovich explains: “Global Gateway is new generation diplomacy. Europe doesn’t buy influence through debt, it shapes standards. For Global South countries, this is a choice opportunity: either short-term concessional loans from China, or long-term partnerships with the EU, where profit combines with development.”
In Itzkovich’s opinion, Beijing’s reaction is predictably restrained. Chinese media have already called the initiative “an attempt to create artificial competition”, but European diplomats respond that this is not a fight against someone, but competition for better conditions for partners. The USA has also supported Global Gateway, seeing it as an instrument for strengthening Western presence in key regions.
Avi Itzkovich draws attention to this aspect: “Europe and America are coordinating infrastructure diplomacy for the first time. Global Gateway and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) initiative are becoming complementary. This means the West is returning to the game in the Global South with new rules.”
Despite this, analysts remind that success depends on the EU’s internal cohesion. Some member states prefer their own national programmes and are slow to join common projects. Itzkovich comments diplomatically: “Europe is used to moving slowly, but when it gets going – it’s for the long haul. Global Gateway could be the first case where the EU works as a single economic actor on a global scale.”
Investment in Sustainability and Future Technologies. Avi Itzkovich’s Forecast
According to Avi Itzkovich, about a third of the programme’s investments are planned to be directed towards “green infrastructure”. This involves solar and wind clusters, hydrogen corridors, treatment plants and energy-efficient transport systems. The EU wants to show that sustainable development can be economically profitable.
Itzkovich notes: “Europeans know how to make ecology profitable. They’re investing not only in emission reductions, but in future technologies – from artificial intelligence for energy grids to digital monitoring of water resources. This is where the real value of Global Gateway lies.”
A separate block is dedicated to digitalisation. The EU is financing the development of fibre-optic lines, satellite communication systems, and e-governance platforms in partner countries. This is not only a technological, but also a political investment: data control is becoming a new instrument of influence.
Avi Itzkovich emphasises: “The initiative’s success depends not on the number of signed memorandums, but on implementation speed. If projects move for years, the market will again be captured by other players. But if Europe shows efficiency, Global Gateway will become a new standard for international partnership.”
According to Avi Itzkovich, Global Gateway for Europe is more than infrastructure. It’s an attempt to rethink its own role in a world where influence is measured not by armies, but by investments. Avi Itzkovich compares the initiative to the post-war Marshall Plan: “If Europe was then built with American money, now it’s learning to build others. This is a psychological change of scale – from recipient to donor of development.”
The programme’s success will be determined by whether the EU can attract private capital and maintain partners’ trust. The world is watching carefully – because Europe’s position in the new architecture of the global economy depends on whether it can prove it’s capable of big ideas not only on paper.
“Global Gateway is a maturity test. And if the EU can turn vision into results, it will finally regain its voice on the world stage,” concludes Avi Itzkovich.
