On southwestern fringe, China's Silk Road ambitions face obstacles - The Himalayan Times

 

The ambitious plan to build land, sea and air routes reaching across the continent and beyond was announced by President Xi Jinping in 2013 with the aim of boosting trade by $2.5 trillion in the next decade. As China's economic growth slows, Beijing is encouraging its companies to win new markets overseas.

 

But across the Southeast Asia border, China is facing the most complex and possibly most significant obstacles to its ambitions, as its neighbours protest what they say are excessive Chinese demands and unfavourable financing conditions.

 

They have resisted Chinese demands for the rights to develop the land either side of the railway. Beijing says turning a profit on land development would make the rest of the project more commercially viable and allow it to make a greater upfront financial commitment. Myanmar, in addition, had environmental concerns and cancelled its part of the project in 2014.

 

For China, Southeast Asia's concerns are "going to be the first significant hurdle as they implement One Belt, One Road," said Peter Cai, a research fellow at Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney.

https://thehimalayantimes.com/world/southwestern-fringe-chinas-silk-road-ambitions-face-obstacles/