Critics of China’s lending practices in Africa and much of the developing world have gone suspiciously quiet over the past 6-7 months. A year or so ago, Kenyans were up in arms over erroneous reports that China was going to seize the Port of Mombasa. A few months later, over the summer, the Nigerian media was awash in fantastical headlines about how the country was forfeiting its sovereignty to China over loans.

And then, of course, there’s Mike Pompeo. The outgoing U.S. Secretary of State never got bored of warning audiences around the world about the dangers of China’s purported “debt-trap diplomacy” agenda.