China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) blamed heightened nationalism, protectionism and populism among U.S. and European governments for the growing lack of trust among Africa’s international creditors. 

“While China is actively promoting the implementation of the G20 “debt relief initiative,” Western countries are beginning to worry that their debt forgiveness to African countries will be used to repay Chinese loans,” wrote Song Wei, an associate research fellow at a MOFCOM think tank in Beijing, in a column that was published in the Global Times newspaper. “Although this worry is absurd,” she added, “it directly reflects how bleak the prospects for international coordination in the future are.”