U.S. President Joe Biden resurfaced the widely discredited debt trap accusation against China as part of a larger effort to differentiate Washington’s economic engagement strategy in the Western Hemisphere from that of Beijing’s.
The president made the claim on Friday during his opening address at the inaugural summit of the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity (APEP) — a new Latin American-Caribbean initiative that, in part, aims to counter China’s growing economic influence in the region.
“We want to make sure that our closest neighbors know they have a real choice between debt trap diplomacy and high quality transparent approaches to infrastructure,” Biden told the eleven heads of state who attended the White House event.
Although the president did not mention China by name, the references to “debt trap” and “high quality infrastructure” are two oft-used characterizations of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative by senior U.S. officials.
The problem, though, is the allegation that China intentionally loads poor developing countries with unsustainable loans to gain political influence was discredited long ago by numerous institutions and scholars in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? Biden’s debt trap reference was scripted in prepared remarks and not made as an off-the-cuff comment, indicating that the meme is still a presidential talking point even though his own State Department and other agencies have long abandoned it.
This indicates a lack of cohesion within the government on the issue and that the National Security Council staff that advises the president is either intentionally disseminating misinformation or grossly misinformed.
SUGGESTED READING:
- South China Morning Post: Biden pitches infrastructure plan for Latin America as ‘debt trap’ alternative by Amber Wang
- Bloomberg: Biden Jabs at China ‘Debt-Trap Diplomacy’ at Americas Summit by Eric Martin and Justin Sink
