When it was announced in 2023 that the African Union would become a full member of the G20, I darkly joked on a podcast that the AU’s entry into the body could very well mark the moment the G20 lost its status as one of the most important global coordination forums. Mark my words, I said, soon The Economist will be like “Uhhh, the G20 is OVER – it’s the ...
Category: Debt Trap
U.S. Is Top Recipient of Chinese State-Bank Loans: New Data
The U.S. is the top recipient of Chinese state-bank loans and grants, according to new AidData figures that trace more than $200 billion across roughly 2,500 U.S. deals since 2000. The new data emerges despite years of U.S. warnings to ...
Indonesia to Renegotiate High-Speed Rail Cost-Sharing with China
Indonesia will reopen talks with China on how to split a $1.2 billion cost overrun on the Jakarta–Bandung high-speed rail, Whoosh, as a new state holding prepares a debt restructuring for the operator. Whoosh is a 142-kilometer Jakarta–Bandung line that ...
Cambodia Defends China’s BRI Against Debt-Trap Accusation
China’s Belt and Road Initiative drew a forceful defense from Cambodia’s leadership this week, even as the accusations, mainly from the U.S. and its allies, over “debt-trap diplomacy” continue to shadow Beijing’s flagship infrastructure program. The phrase, coined in 2017 after ...
Biden Administration Grabs Last Chance to Push Debt Trap Narrative
U.S. President Joe Biden argued on Wednesday that the United States is striving to be a qualitatively different investor from China in Africa. In making this case, administration officials couldn’t resist one last reference to a meme cherished by Democrats and ...
Senior Commerce Ministry Official Says China Not the Main Creditor in Africa, Refutes Debt Trap Charge
The top Africa official at China's powerful Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) forcefully pushed back against U.S. and Indian accusations that Beijing engages in predatory lending on the continent. Shen Xiang, MOFCOM's director of West Asia and Africa, responded to a question ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: The Chinese Supermarket Scandal in Nigeria
Nigerian consumer protection authorities shut a Chinese supermarket in the capital, Abuja after a video went viral showing the store refusing entry to local residents. The scandal sparked outrage online and was among the top stories of the week on national ...
Pentagon’s Top General for U.S. Forces in Africa Isn’t as Worried About Chinese Bases and Debt Traps as He Used to Be
The Pentagon's commander for U.S. forces in Africa, Marine Corps General Michael Langley, was once very worried about Chinese "debt traps" in Africa and the prospect that the PLA was looking to build a new base on Africa's Atlantic Coast. But ...
Why Biden’s Use of ‘Debt Trap’ Was so Awkward
This weekend, U.S. President Joe Biden made clear that, no matter how often it’s debunked, the “debt trap” will never die. Without recapping the entire debate, the talking point implies that Global South countries work with China because they’re ill-informed or have ...
All it Takes is a Simple Google Search to Confirm the China Debt Trap Meme Isn’t Real
President Joe Biden's latest reference to Chinese "debt traps" is part of a broader pattern among high-level U.S. legislative, government and military officials to level the charge against China's lending practices. It's odd that they continue to make the claim since it's been ...
Why the Repeated Claims of Chinese Debt Trap Diplomacy is So Damaging to U.S. Foreign Policy
U.S. President Joe Biden’s comment to leaders from the Americas that: “I 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 and to development,” was only a passing moment.
New Boston University Report Challenges Chinese Debt Trap Meme That’s Still Popular With U.S. Government Officials
Researchers at Boston University's Global Development Policy Center did not mince words in a report published this week, in which they stated that "debt trap diplomacy is not a driver of Chinese lending and overseas development finance." For anyone who follows ...
It’s China, Not Africa That Could be Facing a Debt Trap: Report
At 12% of Africa’s total external debt, China didn’t cause the current wave of debt distress hitting the continent. But the crisis presents Beijing with a dilemma: should it strongarm these countries to get its money back or trade economic losses for diplomatic gains? ...