Caught Between China and the United States: Small Western States’ Reactions to Chinese Port Investments

This article examines how small, Western-aligned states respond to Chinese investment in sensitive sectors, focusing on ports. Although Greece and Israel have attracted attention in this context, they have rarely been analyzed within a shared framework. Together, they enable both internal (Chinese versus non-Chinese projects) and cross-national comparison. The study contributes to debates on the relative weight of domestic and external factors in shaping small-state behavior. It finds that while domestic factors initially conditioned support for Chinese projects, sustained U.S. pressure ultimately reshaped state policies toward them, reframing Chinese port involvement as a security risk. In the process, domestic dynamics and external pressures emerge as mutually reinforcing. Drawing on extensive primary and secondary sources, the study also challenges portrayals of Chinese outward investment as uniform.