Debt-trap diplomacy: Difference between revisions

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The evidence regarding the theory is unclear. Some commentators said that instead of being an extension of China's global power, heavily indebted recipients of Chinese loans were a large liability for China. For example, in Pakistan, China has had to slow down its flagship [[China–Pakistan Economic Corridor]] initiative and provide emergency financing to fend off an economic catastrophe. Pakistan was later forced to approach the IMF for another bailout, which exposed China's loans and investments to global scrutiny. It was argued that no political gain had been realized for Beijing when Pakistan had struggled to pay back loans.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-little-more-than-a-fantasy-32418 |access-date=2021-02-06 |website=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |language=en}}</ref>
The evidence regarding the theory is unclear. Some commentators said that instead of being an extension of China's global power, heavily indebted recipients of Chinese loans were a large liability for China. For example, in Pakistan, China has had to slow down its flagship [[China–Pakistan Economic Corridor]] initiative and provide emergency financing to fend off an economic catastrophe. Pakistan was later forced to approach the IMF for another bailout, which exposed China's loans and investments to global scrutiny. It was argued that no political gain had been realized for Beijing when Pakistan had struggled to pay back loans.<ref>{{Cite web |title=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-little-more-than-a-fantasy-32418 |access-date=2021-02-06 |website=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |language=en}}</ref>


A March 2018 report released by the [[Center for Global Development]], contradicts the theory of debt-trap diplomacy as the paper concludes that between 2001 and 2017, China had restructured or waived loans for 51 debtor nations, the majority of BRI participants, without seizing state assets.<ref>{{citation |first1=John |last1=Hurley |first2=Scott |last2=Morris |first3=Gailyn |last3=Portelance |title=Examining the Debt Implications of the Belt and Road Initiative from a Policy Perspective |publisher=Center for Global Development |date=March 2018 |url=https://www.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/examining-debt-implications-belt-and-road-initiative-policy-perspective.pdf}}</ref>
A March 2018 report released by the [[Center for Global Development]] contradicts the theory of debt-trap diplomacy, saying that between 2001 and 2017, China had restructured or waived loans for 51 debtor nations, the majority of BRI participants, without seizing state assets.<ref>{{citation |first1=John |last1=Hurley |first2=Scott |last2=Morris |first3=Gailyn |last3=Portelance |title=Examining the Debt Implications of the Belt and Road Initiative from a Policy Perspective |publisher=Center for Global Development |date=March 2018 |url=https://www.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/examining-debt-implications-belt-and-road-initiative-policy-perspective.pdf}}</ref>


According to the [[Lowy Institute]] there is no evidence to support deliberate ‘Debt-trap diplomacy' theory as argued by western think tanks.<ref name="lowyinstitute.org">{{Cite news |title=Debunking the myth of China's "debt-trap diplomacy" |work=The Interpreter |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/debunking-myth-china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy |access-date=2021-01-24 |publisher=Lowy Institute |date=9 September 2020 |first=Shahar |last=Hameiri |language=en}}</ref> Since the term was first coined in 2017, various studies have shown that China was not trying to take strategic infrastructure by overwhelming poor countries with unsustainable loans.<ref name="stone">{{Cite web |title=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-little-more-than-a-fantasy-32418 |access-date=2021-01-24 |website=TRT World |date=23 September 2019 |first=Rupert |last=Stone |language=en}}</ref> An example would be Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port, which has been portrayed as the "case par excellence" for China's debt-trap diplomacy. But Sri Lanka's debt distress materialized not from Chinese lending, but more from excessive borrowing on Western-dominated capital markets.<ref name="lowyinstitute.org"/><ref>{{Cite news |first1=Barry |last1=Sautman |author2=Yan Hairong |date=6 May 2019 |title=The truth about China's role in Sri Lanka's Hambantota port |url=https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/3008799/truth-about-sri-lankas-hambantota-port-chinese-debt-traps |access-date=2021-01-24 |work=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref>
According to an article by the [[Lowy Institute]], there is little evidence to support deliberate "debt-trap diplomacy" theory as argued by other Western think tanks.<ref name="lowyinstitute.org">{{Cite news |title=Debunking the myth of China's "debt-trap diplomacy" |work=The Interpreter |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/debunking-myth-china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy |access-date=2021-01-24 |publisher=Lowy Institute |date=9 September 2020 |first=Shahar |last=Hameiri |language=en}}</ref> Some commentators say that since the term was first promoted in 2017, some studies have shown that China was not trying to take strategic infrastructure by overwhelming poor countries with unsustainable loans.<ref name="stone">{{Cite web |title=China's 'debt-trap' diplomacy is little more than a fantasy |url=https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/china-s-debt-trap-diplomacy-is-little-more-than-a-fantasy-32418 |access-date=2021-01-24 |website=TRT World |date=23 September 2019 |first=Rupert |last=Stone |language=en}}</ref> For example, Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port has been portrayed as the "case par excellence" for China's debt-trap diplomacy. But some commentators suggested that Sri Lanka's debt distress materialized not from Chinese lending, but more from excessive borrowing on Western-dominated capital markets.<ref name="lowyinstitute.org"/><ref>{{Cite news |first1=Barry |last1=Sautman |author2=Yan Hairong |date=6 May 2019 |title=The truth about China's role in Sri Lanka's Hambantota port |url=https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/3008799/truth-about-sri-lankas-hambantota-port-chinese-debt-traps |access-date=2021-01-24 |work=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref>


A [[SAIS China Africa Research Initiative (SAIS-CARI)|SAIS-CARI]] report from August 2018 found "Chinese loans are not currently a major contributor to debt distress in Africa. Yet many countries have borrowed heavily from China and others. Any new <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Forum on China–Africa Cooperation]] (FOCAC)] loan pledges will likely take the growing debt burden of African countries into account."<ref name="AutoYD-6" /> A 2019 peer-reviewed [[Johns Hopkins University|Johns Hopkins]] research paper by [[Deborah Brautigam]] found that most of these countries voluntarily signed on to these loans and had positive experiences working with China, and "the evidence so far, including the Sri Lankan case, shows that the drumbeat of alarm about Chinese banks' funding of infrastructure across the BRI and beyond is overblown" and "…a large number of people have favorable opinions of China as an economic model and consider China an attractive partner for their development."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mahbubani |first=Kishore |title=Opinion: How China could win over the post-coronavirus world and leave the U.S. behind |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-china-could-win-over-the-post-coronavirus-world-and-leave-the-us-behind-2020-04-14 |access-date=2021-01-24 |website=MarketWatch |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="rohtY">{{Cite web |last=Mahbubani |first=Kishore |title=How China could win over the post-coronavirus world and leave the U.S. behind |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-china-could-win-over-the-post-coronavirus-world-and-leave-the-us-behind-2020-04-14 |access-date=2020-07-13 |website=MarketWatch |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="YLETT" />
A [[SAIS China Africa Research Initiative (SAIS-CARI)|SAIS-CARI]] report from August 2018 found "Chinese loans are not currently a major contributor to debt distress in Africa. Yet many countries have borrowed heavily from China and others. Any new <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Forum on China–Africa Cooperation]] (FOCAC)] loan pledges will likely take the growing debt burden of African countries into account."<ref name="AutoYD-6" /> A 2019 research paper by [[Deborah Brautigam]] found that most of these countries voluntarily signed on to these loans and had positive experiences working with China, and "the evidence so far, including the Sri Lankan case, shows that the drumbeat of alarm about Chinese banks' funding of infrastructure across the BRI and beyond is overblown" and "a large number of people have favorable opinions of China as an economic model and consider China an attractive partner for their development."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mahbubani |first=Kishore |title=Opinion: How China could win over the post-coronavirus world and leave the U.S. behind |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-china-could-win-over-the-post-coronavirus-world-and-leave-the-us-behind-2020-04-14 |access-date=2021-01-24 |website=MarketWatch |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="rohtY">{{Cite web |last=Mahbubani |first=Kishore |title=How China could win over the post-coronavirus world and leave the U.S. behind |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-china-could-win-over-the-post-coronavirus-world-and-leave-the-us-behind-2020-04-14 |access-date=2020-07-13 |website=MarketWatch |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="YLETT" />


The [[Rhodium Group]] has stated China's leverage in debt renegotiation is often exaggerated and was realistically limited in power, and that the findings of their study frequently showed an outcome in favor of the borrower rather than the supposedly predatory Chinese lender.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New Data on the "Debt Trap" Question |url=https://rhg.com/research/new-data-on-the-debt-trap-question/ |access-date=2020-07-17 |website=Rhodium Group |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="stone"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Glosserman |first=Brad |date=2020-09-01 |title='Debt trap' diplomacy is a card China seldom plays in Belt and Road initiative |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2020/09/01/commentary/debt-trap-diplomacy-bri-china/ |access-date=2021-02-02 |website=The Japan Times |language=en-US}}</ref> A May 2019 article in the [[Sydney Morning Herald]] said the term was being questioned by new research; an analysis of 40 Chinese debt re-negotiations by the Rhodium Group found "asset seizures are a very rare occurrence" and that debt [[write-off]] is the most common outcome.<ref name="Needham SMH">{{Cite web |last=Needham |first=Kirsty |date=2019-05-02 |title=Data doesn't support Belt and Road debt trap claims |url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/data-doesn-t-support-belt-and-road-debt-trap-claims-20190502-p51jhx.html |access-date=2020-07-13 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en}}</ref> The article also reported the views of [[Australian National University]] senior lecturer Darren Lim, who, referring to the Rhodium Group study, said much of the leverage shifts to the borrower rather than the lender after the loan has been made. Lim said despite the debt-trap diplomacy claim never being credible, it was pushed by the [[Trump administration]].<ref name="Needham SMH" />
The [[Rhodium Group]] has stated China's leverage in debt renegotiation is often exaggerated and was realistically limited in power, and that the findings of their study frequently showed an outcome in favor of the borrower rather than the supposedly predatory Chinese lender.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New Data on the "Debt Trap" Question |url=https://rhg.com/research/new-data-on-the-debt-trap-question/ |access-date=2020-07-17 |website=Rhodium Group |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="stone"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Glosserman |first=Brad |date=2020-09-01 |title='Debt trap' diplomacy is a card China seldom plays in Belt and Road initiative |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2020/09/01/commentary/debt-trap-diplomacy-bri-china/ |access-date=2021-02-02 |website=The Japan Times |language=en-US}}</ref> A May 2019 article in the ''[[Sydney Morning Herald]]'' said the term was being questioned by new research; an analysis of 40 Chinese debt re-negotiations by the Rhodium Group found "asset seizures are a very rare occurrence" and that debt [[write-off]] is the most common outcome.<ref name="Needham SMH">{{Cite web |last=Needham |first=Kirsty |date=2019-05-02 |title=Data doesn't support Belt and Road debt trap claims |url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/data-doesn-t-support-belt-and-road-debt-trap-claims-20190502-p51jhx.html |access-date=2020-07-13 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en}}</ref> The article also reported the views of [[Australian National University]] senior lecturer Darren Lim, who, referring to the Rhodium Group study, said much of the leverage shifts to the borrower rather than the lender after the loan has been made. Lim said despite the debt-trap diplomacy claim never being credible, it was pushed by the [[Trump administration]].<ref name="Needham SMH" />


A 2019 report by the [[Lowy Institute]] said China had not engaged in deliberate actions in the Pacific that can justify the accusations of debt-trap diplomacy, at least based on contemporaneous evidence, and stated China has not been the primary driver behind rising debt risks in the Pacific but warned the scale of its lending and the institutional weakness within Pacific states would pose risks of small states being overwhelmed by debt.<ref name="theguardian_20191021_chinese" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=21 October 2019 |first1=Roland |last1=Rajah |first2=Alexandre |last2=Dayant |first3=Jonathan |last3=Pryke |title=Ocean of debt? Belt and Road and debt diplomacy in the Pacific |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/ocean-debt-belt-and-road-and-debt-diplomacy-pacific |access-date=2020-07-17 |website=www.lowyinstitute.org |language=en |publisher=Lowy Institute}}</ref> Other critics include Chinese state-owned newspaper ''[[Global Times]]'' and Rwandan President [[Paul Kagame]].
A 2019 report by the [[Lowy Institute]] said China had not engaged in deliberate actions in the Pacific that can justify the accusations of debt-trap diplomacy, at least based on contemporaneous evidence, and stated China has not been the primary driver behind rising debt risks in the Pacific but warned the scale of its lending and the institutional weakness within Pacific states would pose risks of small states being overwhelmed by debt.<ref name="theguardian_20191021_chinese" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=21 October 2019 |first1=Roland |last1=Rajah |first2=Alexandre |last2=Dayant |first3=Jonathan |last3=Pryke |title=Ocean of debt? Belt and Road and debt diplomacy in the Pacific |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/ocean-debt-belt-and-road-and-debt-diplomacy-pacific |access-date=2020-07-17 |website=www.lowyinstitute.org |language=en |publisher=Lowy Institute}}</ref> Other critics include Chinese state-owned newspaper ''[[Global Times]]'' and Rwandan President [[Paul Kagame]].

Revision as of 04:33, 17 July 2021

Template:Check category

Debt-trap diplomacy is a theory that describes a powerful lending country or institution seeking to saddle a borrowing nation with enormous debt so as to increase its leverage over it.[1][2] Debt-trap diplomacy is associated with Indian academic Brahma Chellaney, who promoted the term in early 2017. It is most commonly used in relation to China, in the context of Chinese infrastructure loans to developing nations and the Chinese government's subsequent leveraging of accumulated debt.

Origin and background

The term "debt-trap diplomacy" was promoted by Brahma Chellaney to describe China's predatory lending practices in which poor countries would be overwhelmed with unsustainable loans and forced to cede strategic leverage to China.[3] The term was first used in 2017; within 12 months it had quickly spread through the media, intelligence circles, and Western governments.[4] It has since expanded to include other parts[which?] of the world[5] and was further defined and expanded[clarification needed] upon in the context of Chinese geostrategic interests in a 2018 report published by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.[6][7]

The theory of debt-trap diplomacy is that the creditor country intentionally extends excessive credit to a debtor country, thereby inducing the debtor into a debt trap. This is done with the intention of extracting economic or political concessions from the debtor country when it becomes unable to meet its debt repayment obligations.[6] The conditions of the loans are often not made public,[8] and the borrowed money commonly pays contractors from the creditor country. Although the term has been applied to the lending practices of many countries[which?] and the International Monetary Fund (IMF),[9][10][clarification needed] it is most commonly used in relation to the People's Republic of China (PRC).[11]

The Belt and Road Initiative is a multi-billion-dollar expansion project of China, to expand its power through lending to countries to spur their economic growth.[12] The BRI project was launched in 2013 by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to improve the infrastructure of countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia in exchange for global trade opportunities and economic advantage.[12] Bilateral agreements made as part of China's BRI have particularly furthered this association, specifically with regard to Chinese infrastructure loans to developing nations and the consequent leveraging of accumulated debt to achieve Beijing's strategic aims.[13][14][15]

Proponents of the "debt-trap diplomacy" theory have said that China's geostrategic interests are served when its partners struggle with debt. The resulting economic crises supposedly would allow Beijing to exploit and seize assets and helps its political influence.

Debt-trap diplomacy has been referred to by several other terms, including "debt-book diplomacy".[16]

By the People's Republic of China

China's overseas development policy has been called debt-trap diplomacy because once indebted economies fail to service their loans, they are said to be pressured to support China's geostrategic interests.[17] According to inventor of the term, Brahma Chellaney, "it's clearly part of China's geostrategic vision".[18]

Studies by economic experts in Chinese state financial practices found the patterns of China's bank lending purposefully trap governments to gain strategic opportunities for China.[19] China has been accused of requiring secret negotiations and non-competitive pricing on projects in which bidding must be closed and contracts must go to Chinese state-owned or state-linked companies that charge significantly higher prices than would be charged on the open market.[20]

Some Western,[21][22] Indian,[23] and African[24][25] media have criticized China's loan terms and high interest rates. For example, a 2006 loan to Tonga sought to rebuild infrastructure.[26] From 2013 to 2014, Tonga suffered a debt crisis when the Exim Bank of China, to which the loans are owed, did not forgive them.[27] The loans claimed 44 percent of Tonga's gross domestic product (GDP).[27] Western analysts have said China's practices hide hegemonic intentions and challenges to states' sovereignty.[28][29] China has also been accused of imposing unfair trade and financial deals when cash-poor countries are unable to resist Beijing's money.[30]

In August 2018, a bipartisan group of 16 US senators cited “the dangers of China’s debt-trap diplomacy”, saying: “It is imperative that the United States counters China’s attempts to hold other countries financially hostage and force ransoms that further its geostrategic goals”.[31] US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that China's debt-trap diplomacy is oiled with bribes, adding "China shows up with bribes to senior leaders in countries, in exchange for infrastructure projects" in an October 2018 speech.[32][33] S. K. Chatterji at Asia Times commented that China's BRI-led debt-trap diplomacy is the economic aspect of China's salami slice strategy.[34]

A 2018 paper published by Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs claimed three strategic goals behind China's use of this technique: "filling out a 'String of Pearls' to solve its 'Malacca Dilemma' and project power across vital South Asian trading routes; undermining and fracturing the US-led regional coalition contesting Beijing’s South China Sea claims; and enabling the People’s Liberation Army Navy to push through the 'Second Island Chain' into the blue-water Pacific".[16]

Criticism

The evidence regarding the theory is unclear. Some commentators said that instead of being an extension of China's global power, heavily indebted recipients of Chinese loans were a large liability for China. For example, in Pakistan, China has had to slow down its flagship China–Pakistan Economic Corridor initiative and provide emergency financing to fend off an economic catastrophe. Pakistan was later forced to approach the IMF for another bailout, which exposed China's loans and investments to global scrutiny. It was argued that no political gain had been realized for Beijing when Pakistan had struggled to pay back loans.[35]

A March 2018 report released by the Center for Global Development contradicts the theory of debt-trap diplomacy, saying that between 2001 and 2017, China had restructured or waived loans for 51 debtor nations, the majority of BRI participants, without seizing state assets.[36]

According to an article by the Lowy Institute, there is little evidence to support deliberate "debt-trap diplomacy" theory as argued by other Western think tanks.[37] Some commentators say that since the term was first promoted in 2017, some studies have shown that China was not trying to take strategic infrastructure by overwhelming poor countries with unsustainable loans.[38] For example, Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port has been portrayed as the "case par excellence" for China's debt-trap diplomacy. But some commentators suggested that Sri Lanka's debt distress materialized not from Chinese lending, but more from excessive borrowing on Western-dominated capital markets.[37][39]

A SAIS-CARI report from August 2018 found "Chinese loans are not currently a major contributor to debt distress in Africa. Yet many countries have borrowed heavily from China and others. Any new [Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC)] loan pledges will likely take the growing debt burden of African countries into account."[40] A 2019 research paper by Deborah Brautigam found that most of these countries voluntarily signed on to these loans and had positive experiences working with China, and "the evidence so far, including the Sri Lankan case, shows that the drumbeat of alarm about Chinese banks' funding of infrastructure across the BRI and beyond is overblown" and "a large number of people have favorable opinions of China as an economic model and consider China an attractive partner for their development."[41][42][4]

The Rhodium Group has stated China's leverage in debt renegotiation is often exaggerated and was realistically limited in power, and that the findings of their study frequently showed an outcome in favor of the borrower rather than the supposedly predatory Chinese lender.[43][38][44] A May 2019 article in the Sydney Morning Herald said the term was being questioned by new research; an analysis of 40 Chinese debt re-negotiations by the Rhodium Group found "asset seizures are a very rare occurrence" and that debt write-off is the most common outcome.[45] The article also reported the views of Australian National University senior lecturer Darren Lim, who, referring to the Rhodium Group study, said much of the leverage shifts to the borrower rather than the lender after the loan has been made. Lim said despite the debt-trap diplomacy claim never being credible, it was pushed by the Trump administration.[45]

A 2019 report by the Lowy Institute said China had not engaged in deliberate actions in the Pacific that can justify the accusations of debt-trap diplomacy, at least based on contemporaneous evidence, and stated China has not been the primary driver behind rising debt risks in the Pacific but warned the scale of its lending and the institutional weakness within Pacific states would pose risks of small states being overwhelmed by debt.[46][47] Other critics include Chinese state-owned newspaper Global Times and Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

By the IMF and World Bank

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been accused of being a predatory lender, keeping emerging economies in debt.[48][49][50][51] On the other hand, the IMF has criticised Chinese Belt and Road loans as being predatory lending.[52] In April 2019, the Chinese Ministry of Finance released a new Debt Sustainability Framework,[53] which has been described as being "virtually identical" to the that of the World Bank and IMF.[54]

Both the World Bank and IMF have demanded Structural Adjustment Programmes as a condition to provide loans, often to governments who see these loans as a last resort.[55] Furthermore, they have been criticised of increasing poverty by pressuring for privatizations[56][57][58] and of having ulterior motives of gaining leverage over central banks.[59] According to economist Michael Hudson, World Bank loans were supposed to increase lenders dependence on the US, in "a natural continuation of European colonialism".[60] The Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt has stated that "the [World Bank] and the IMF have systematically made loans to States as a means of influencing their policies."[61] The IMF has used geopolitical considerations rather than solely economic conditions to decide which countries received loans.[62]

In 2020, Oxfam reported that the IMF was "using its power" through COVID-19 pandemic relief loans to pose austerity on poor countries.[63] IMF conditions have forced recipients to cut healthcare spending, hampering their response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[64]

In 2021, Trinidad and Tobago's government defended their decision to take a multi-million dollar loan from China, rather than from the IMF by stating that unlike IMF, Beijing weren't demanding any 'stringent conditionalities' for its loans. Minister of Finance Colm Imbert was quoted to state in a news conference,

The Chinese loan has a very attractive interest rate of two per cent. The IMF is 1.05 per cent, so there isn’t much to choose between them. If you’re making a judgement call…one loan, no structural adjustment, you don’t have to retrench people, you don’t have to de-value your currency, etc. etc….and then another…you have to do all kinds of terrible things…that’s a no-brainer, obviously you’d go with the one that doesn’t have any structural adjustment conditionalities associated with it, especially since the interest rates are very close, just one per cent apart.

— Colm Imbert

[65][66]

Africa

Chinese loans to Africa[67]
Year Billions of US$
2005
2
2006
5
2007
6
2008
4
2009
6
2010
7
2011
10
2012
13
2013
18
2014
15
2015
13
2016
30

Since 2000, African countries have rapidly increased their borrowing from China,[clarification needed][68] totaling US$94.5 billion up to 2014, as they seek to end their dependence on the IMF and World Bank, who demand market liberalisation in exchange for loans.[69] China is a major stakeholder in the economies of many African countries with a significant influence on many aspects of the continent's affairs.[68] According to research conducted as part of the Jubilee Debt Campaign in October 2018,[70] African countries owed China US$10 billion in 2010, increasing to over $30 billion by 2016.[70] China's lending to African countries is part of a large-scale overseas investment boom, forming part of its quest to secure access to raw materials and become an economic superpower.[71]

As of 2020, the countries in Africa with the largest Chinese debt are Angola ($25 billion), Ethiopia ($13.5 billion), Zambia ($7.4 billion), the Republic of Congo ($7.3 billion), and Sudan ($6.4 billion).[72] In total the Chinese have loaned US$143 billion to African governments and state owned enterprises between 2000 and 2017.[73][74]

Infrastructure

Several infrastructure projects funded by Chinese loans are thought[by whom?] to have had a positive impact on the economies of many African countries[who?] via developments in infrastructure.[75] Infrastructure improved with these loans includes roads, railways, and ports.[75] Improved infrastructure favors internal trade, healthcare, and education systems.[75] One example of infrastructure development is the Merowe Dam in Sudan to produce hydroelectric power.[75]

In the 2015 and 2017 records of World Bank, several African countries have large debts with China and other creditor nations.[76] Interest rates of about 55% in the private sector prompted some African countries to go to China for loans, which charges around 17%.[76] The debts of African countries to China paid for the investment in sectors needing critical development and growth.[77] In exchange, China in demands payment in the form of jobs and natural resources.[77]

Economic risks

In 2018 it was reported by The Guardian that some countries in the BRI project have started rethinking the project and 8 countries were at risk of being unable to repay the loans.[19] According to Jonathan Hillman, director of the Reconnecting Asia Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, there is more to these projects than financial strategy; "It's also a vehicle for China to write new rules, establish institutions that reflect Chinese interests, and reshape 'soft' infrastructure".[19]

The negative effects of Chinese loans to African economies include fear of losing local companies to Chinese companies with strong buying power.[12] Debt from China has promoted illicit trade among China and African countries;[19] [failed verification]such imports are cheap because of China's low-cost labor and are preferred to locally manufactured goods, for example, clothing and electronics. Trade between African countries and China has also affected ties between African countries and other continents, especially Europe and North America. According to Deborah Brautigam, Chinese loans are prone to misuse, and have promoted the levels of corruption and fights for power in African countries.[12]

Over four-fifths of China's investments are spent on infrastructure projects in underdeveloped and developing countries.[19] Forecasts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) show the economic growth-rate of China will[when?] fall to around 6.2%, which is around 0.4% less than in 2018.[78] Reason for the decline are the increasing number of trade disputes between China and the US, and the sudden increase in debt in the past decade, which was used for infrastructure programs.[79]

Chinese loans have been compared as an alternative to IMF loans, but differing in that IMF loans are lower cost, financed by the, often limited, government income, while Chinese loans are more expensive, but secured by profitable high-revenue projects.[80]

Kenya

The Goldenberg scandal was made possible partly due to IMF and World Bank imposed trade measures.[citation needed]

Between 2006 and 2017, Kenya took out loans of at least US$9.8 billion (Sh1043.77 billion) from China.[81] Chinese debt accounts for 21% of Kenya's foreign debt, and 72% of Kenya's bilateral debt.[82][83] China lent Kenya extensive funds to build highways and a railway between Mombasa and Nairobi,[84][85] totaling over US$6.5 billion as of 2020.[6] In late December 2018, Kenya reportedly came close to default on Chinese loans to develop its largest and most lucrative port, the Port of Mombasa. A default could have forced Kenya to relinquish control of the port to China.[86][87] Kenyan media has debated whether Chinese loans are worth the risk, drawing analogies with the experience of § Sri Lanka; some commentators[who?] have said these loans could jeopardize Kenyan sovereignty.[84][88]

South Africa

South Africa is estimated to owe the equivalent of 4% of its annual GDP to China.[89] South Africa has received multiple tranches of Chinese loans, some of which have raised concerns around their opaque conditions[90] and alleged links to corruption in South Africa. This includes a controversial US$2.5 billion loan from the Chinese Development Bank to state-owned South African electrical utility Eskom that was arranged during the Jacob Zuma government.[91] Another US$2.5 billion loan from a private Chinese company Huarong Energy to Eskom was found by the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into state corruption to be improper,[92] prompting Eskom chairperson Jabu Mabuza to state Eskom would not be repaying the loan due to irregularities and corruption involved in the issuing of it.[93]

An additional R370 billion (US$25.8 billion) loan from the China Development Bank during the presidency of Cyril Ramaphosa was given to promote a 2018 economic stimulus package. The South African government initially described the loan as a "gift";[94] the details of the loan were not made public, causing significant public controversy.[95][96] The government justified the loan by stating the interest rate was not exorbitant[97] and that it could not be disclosed due to confidentiality clauses.[98] The loan was criticized by the opposition Democratic Alliance political party for possibly pushing the country into a "debt trap".[98][95]

Rest of Africa

  • Nigeria: US$3.1 billion of the country's total US$27.6 billion foreign debt is owned by China. Nigerian financial publication Nairametrics warned of falling into a Chinese debt trap given Nigeria's notable problems with corruption.[99]
  • Zambia: Based on statistics presented in The Economist in 2018, China likely holds a quarter to a third of Zambia's external debt; which are comparable to other creditors such as the US and the World Bank.[100] In 2018, Zambian lawmakers debated whether Chinese loans put Zambian sovereignty at risk.[101] In the same year, the British specialist publication, Africa Confidential report made claims that Zesco—Zambia's state-owned national power company—has been in talks regarding repossession by a Chinese company. The Zambian government has refuted those allegations for Zesco's privatization.[102]
  • Djibouti: Loans to develop a strategic port.[103] Chinese loans total 77% of the country's total debt.[100] Djibouti owes over 80 percent of its GDP to China and in 2017, became host to China's first overseas military base.[104]
  • Republic of the Congo: an estimated $2.5 billion is owed to Chinese lenders. The exact number is unknown even to the Congolese government.[100]
  • Egypt: China is financing the country's new capital.[105] In an interview, Gen. Ahmed Abdeen, who heads the Egyptian state-owned enterprise overseeing the new capital, criticized American reluctance to invest in Egypt, saying; "Stop talking to us about human rights. Come and do business with us. The Chinese are coming—they are seeking win-win situations. Welcome to the Chinese."[105]

Latin America

An article in CNBC said Chinese investment in Latin America has been burgeoning and that the project has been heavily criticized amid allegations of debt-trap diplomacy and neocolonialism.[106] These concerns have been pronounced, especially in Venezuela and Ecuador.[107]

  • Argentina: Argentina has been denied access and oversight of a Chinese satellite tracking station on its territory.[104]
  • Ecuador: In March 2019, Ecuador agreed to borrow US$4.2 billion from the IMF, at a cost of 6% of its yearly GDP, while still being indebted US$6 billion to the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank.[48] Ecuador has agreed to sell 80-to-90 percent of its crude oil to China through 2024 in exchange for US$6.5 billion in Chinese loans.[104]
  • Venezuela: an article published by Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy said China's loans in Venezuela are not debt-trap diplomacy nor "creditor imperialism", but simply "lose-lose" financial mistakes in which both parties stand to lose.[5] An article in Quartz summarized the Carnegie article; "counter to the dominant narrative about Chinese debt ensnaring other countries, the country that needs to fear excessive and unsustainable Chinese lending the most is China".[108]


Asia

Sri Lanka

Loans from China to build the Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka have been alleged as an example of debt-trap diplomacy

Critics of Chinese foreign policy allege that the loan given to the Sri Lankan government by the Exim Bank of China to build Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port[109] and Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport is an example of debt-trap diplomacy, a characterization that is disputed.[110] The state-owned Chinese firms China Harbour Engineering Company and Sinohydro Corporation were hired to build Magampura Port for US$361 million, which was 85% funded by Exim Bank of China at an annual interest rate of 6.3%.[111] It was leased to the Chinese state-owned China Merchants Port Holdings Company Limited on a 99-year lease in 2017, and lease payments were used for strengthening Sri Lanka's foreign reserves.[112][110] This caused concern in the United States, Japan,[29] and India that the port might be used as a Chinese naval base[113] to contain China's geopolitical rivals. Other concerns included the possibility that the Chinese government might “repossess” the projects financed by Chinese loans.

Deborah Bräutigam, a professor at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, has disputed the usage of the term "debt-trap diplomacy" to describe Chinese foreign monetary policies and has stated that such an allegation is a "misrepresentation of Chinese lending practices".[114][115] With regards to Sri Lanka in particular, Bräutigam has noted that Chinese banks have thus far been more willing to restructure the terms of existing loans and have never seized a state asset, much less the port of Hambantota.[114] Bräutigam notes that it was the Canadian International Development Agency that financed the Canadian engineering and construction firm SNC-Lavalin to carry out a feasibility study for the port; the study was concluded in 2003 and confirmed that construction for a port at Hambantota was feasible.[115] A second feasibility report, concluded in 2006 by the Danish engineering firm Ramboll, had made similar recommendations.[115] According to Bräutigam, in order to justify its existence, the port in Hambantota only had to secure only a fraction of the cargo that went through Singapore.[115] At the time that President Sirisena took office in 2015, Sri Lanka owed more to Japan, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank than to China;[115] of the $4.5 billion in debt service Sri Lanka had to pay in 2017, only 5 percent of this was due to Hambantota.[115] Bräutigam was informed by multiple Sri Lanka Central Bank governors that the Hambantota, and Chinese finance in general, were not the major sources of the country's financial distress, and Bräutigam also reports that Sri Lanka also did not default on any loans to China.[115] Colombo had originally arranged a bailout from the IMF, but decided to raise the required funds by leasing out the underperforming Hambantota Port to an experienced company just as the Canadian feasibility report had recommended.[115]

Karunasena Kodituwakku, the Sri Lankan ambassador to China, rejected accusations of debt trap diplomacy and emphasized that the Chinese government did not ask the Sri Lankan government to hand over the handling of the port; he stated that it was instead the Sri Lankan government who initially sought out China to lease the port. Other Sri Lankan representatives have noted that "it made sense for Sri Lanka to welcome Chinese investment in the port, given that the vast majority of commercial shipping arriving into it was from China."[116][117]

Chatham House published a research paper in 2020 concluding that Sri Lanka's debt distress was unconnected to Chinese lending, but resulted instead more from "domestic policy decisions" facilitated by Western lending and monetary policy, rather than by the policies from the Chinese government.[118] The paper was also skeptical of the claim that China could use Hambantota as a naval base and called the claim as being "clearly erroneous".[118] The paper noted that Sri Lankan politicians and diplomats have repeatedly insisted that the topic was never brought up with Beijing, and so far there has been no evidence of any Chinese military activity at or near Hambantota since the commencement of the port's lease.[118]

The lease itself was delayed for several months because of concerns that the port could be used for military purposes and opposition from trade unions and political parties, which called it a sellout of Sri Lankan national assets to China.[119][120] Sri Lanka's other debt obligations so far have not been similarly addressed; for example, Japanese-funded infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka were scrapped in late 2020 and the underlying agreements scrapped, doing some damage to Sri Lanka's international reputation. [121] Sri Lanka has also indicated that it is reconsidering the lease of the Hambantota port to China and is revisiting the agreement.[122]

Pakistan

Since 1950, Pakistan has received $42.7 billion in World Bank assistance, of which $33.4 billion is in loans and $9.3 billion is in grants; this has allowed the World Bank to exert local and national decision-making power in Pakistan, for example via the offering of public contracts and the appointment of State Bank governors.[123]

According to data from the State Bank of Pakistan, Pakistan's debt to the People's Republic of China was $7.2 billion in 2017, which had increased to $19 billion by April 2018 and $30 billion by 2020, mostly due to loans to fund the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.[124][125] Experts have estimated that at the present time, Pakistan would require nearly 40 years to pay back this debt obligation to China.[126] A number of scholars have stated that the CPEC "subordinates Pakistan's interests to China's" and argue that the CPEC, and Pakistan's resultant debt obligations to and economic dependence on China, could become a threat to Pakistan's sovereignty.[127]

Additionally, in 2017 China and Pakistan entered into an agreement to build 5 hydropower projects, with China investing $50 billion in these.[128] According to Hassan Abbas, a Pakistani-American scholar and academic in the field of South Asian and Middle Eastern studies, project delays are likely to cause costs to escalate to $98 billion.[128] With an accumulated interest of almost $5 billion per year, Pakistan would have to pay almost $200 billion over 20 years to China and scholars suggest that the debt could give China an upper hand in Pakistan's affairs.[128] To date, at least one of these projects has been scrapped by Pakistan due to objections to the terms of agreement.[129]

Malaysia

China financed $22 billion worth of projects in Malaysia during the leadership of Prime Minister Najib Razak.[20] On 31 May 2014, Razak made a state visit to China, during which he was welcomed by China's Premier Li Keqiang. China and Malaysia pledged to increase bilateral trade to US$160 billion by 2017, and to increase economic and financial co-operation, especially in the production of halal food, water processing, railway construction, and ports.[130]

After his inauguration in 2018, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad cancelled projects worth approximately $2.795 billion with China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau for oil and gas pipelines, saying Malaysia would not be able to repay its obligations.[20] Ninety percent of the cost of several of the pipelines in Borneo and from Malacca to Johor had been paid but only 13% of the construction had been completed.[131] Mohamad also stated some of the funding from the Exim Bank of China had been misappropriated as part of the 1MDB scandal.[131]

Mohamad and his Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng criticized the projects,[131] saying they were expensive, unnecessary, not useful, uncompetitive because open bidding was not allowed, secretive, conducted with no public oversight, and favored Chinese state-owned firms and those affiliated with Razak's United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party at inflated prices.[20] Locals in Malacca City also complained the port was unneeded and that the small company that was awarded the contract had ties to the previously-ruling UMNO political party.[20]

When confronted with China's String of Pearls strategy in the Indian Ocean and China's motives in Malaysia and the Strait of Malacca, Malaysian Deputy Minister of Defense Liew Chin Tong said:

You look at a map and you can see the places where China is plotting ports and investments, from Myanmar to Pakistan to Sri Lanka, on toward Djibouti. What's crucial to all that? Our little Malaysia, and the Malacca Strait. I say publicly that we do not want to see warships in the Strait of Malacca or the South China Sea."[20]

The loans and their terms were later renegotiated and Mahathir Mohamad pledged support for the BRI and became one of the key opening speakers of the BRI Summit in Beijing in 2019.[132][42]

Maldives

In December 2019, the Speaker of the Maldives' parliament, the People's Majlis, and former President Mohamed Nasheed said Maldives owed China $3.5 billion in loans, which included $1.5 billion in government-to-government loans, private loans, and sovereign guarantees. He said the Chinese debt trap was an economic and human-rights issue, and an issue of sovereignty and freedom of the island nation.[133][134] Nasheed has also said that the project costs were inflated and the debt on paper is far greater than the $1.1bn actually received.[135]

Philippines

Under World Bank president Robert McNamara, the World Bank provided over US$2.6 billion in loans to the Philippines to strengthen American business interests and support martial law under Ferdinand Marcos.[61][136]

Indonesia

Between 1969 and 2017, the World Bank committed approximately US$58.7 billion to Indonesia in exchange for liberalizing trade and foreign direct investment.[137][138] World Bank reform recommendations have been blamed for deforestation and land disputes.[137]

Tajikistan

By 2008, the People's Republic of China surpassed Tajikstan's other creditors in terms of outstanding loans; by the following year, 77% of Tajikstan's total loan portfolio was composed of Chinese loans.[139]

In 2011, Tajikistan's parliament agreed to cede approximately 1,000 km2 (390 sq mi) of land to China in exchange for a waiver of an outstanding debt amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.[140]

As of 2018, Tajikstan's debts to foreign creditors ("external debt") is estimated to be $2.9 billion,[141][140] of which $1.2 billion is owed to the Exim (Export-Import) Bank of China.[140] That year, reports indicated that Xinjiang-based TBEA was granted a gold mine concession in remuneration for the TBEA's costs incurred for building a 400-megawatt power plant in Dushanbe.[140]

As of the end of 2020, Tajikstan's total external debt neared $3.1 billion; of this, $1.12 billion (approximately 37% of the total) is owed to the Exim Bank of China.[139]

Other countries

China has made loans to Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Tajikistan, and Mongolia, and to build a national highway in Montenegro, as part of the BRI.[103][142]

It has also made US$19 billion worth of loans to Pakistan as part of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and other projects.[103][143] In December 2018, New York Times reported on emerging military dimensions of the investments, which it termed a debt-trap, and stated are under poor governance and transparency.[144] China also made a US$115 million loan to Tonga to redevelop its infrastructure,[145] and US$2 billion in loans to Papua New Guinea totaling almost a quarter of its national debt.[145] China has numerous work projects ongoing in Trinidad and Tobago. These include a $500 million Chinese-built drydock and $102 million industrial park in La Brea, Trinidad and Tobago.[146]

In April 2021, the prime minister of Montenegro asked the EU to help the country to repay the US$1 billion loan granted by the Exim Bank of China in 2014 to fund the A-1 motorway, accounting for roughly 25% of the external debt of the country. In case of non-payment, the loaner will be granted thousands of hectares of lands. The project was deemed twice neither unfeasible nor economically viable by two feasibility studies made by the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development and the European Investment Bank, hence EU's refusal to fund it. [147]

Estimated at US$23.8 millions per kilometre, it is one of the most costful highway worldwide.[148]

See also

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