How China sees the role of the Belt and Road Initiative in the (post) Covid era

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a busy start to the year 2021. His itinerary may tell us how the BRI is being adjusted for new global realities

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Foreign aid

China’s Manifesto for Leadership in Global Development

A new White Paper articulates China’s approach to international development cooperation, aiming to restore the moral orientation in development assistance and gain legitimacy among international and domestic audiences.

Southeast Asia

Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park: how industrial policy reshapes Chinese investment and corporate alliances

Host country elites are using BRI investments as leverage to advance industrial policy goals, creating winners and losers along the way.

Overseas finance

Debt repayment issues in highly-indebted BRI countries: risks and opportunities in the new year

For at least 10 BRI countries, debt service to China is going to become a major fiscal burden in the coming years. Dr. Christoph Nedopil and Mengdi Yue argue that China needs to make debt relief multipateral, fair and green to be a global standard setter.

Southeast Asia

Easy Money and Political Opportunism: How China and Japan’s High-Speed Rail Competition in Indonesia drives financially risky projects

Asia’s infrastructure needs are real. But creditor competition can motivate political opportunism rather than sound policy choices, argues Jessica Liao.

The winners and losers of the Belt and Road Initiative: from their own perspectives

Belt and Road Through My Village is a new book that listens to the perspectives of those most affected by BRI mega projects

Who gets to be green on the BRI and on whose terms?

An interview with Tyler Harlan on the politics of “greenness” of the Belt and Road Initiative

Introducing the Paw Tracker!

How one think tank represents evolving thinking on BRI infrastructure investments

Chinese think tank CREEI wants to spearhead a new approach to planning China’s overseas energy investment

Charting the Belt and Road decision making machine

Understanding who makes what decisions in the Belt and Road Initiative, an interview with Dr Thomas Hale

What we know about China’s approach to debt relief: Insights from two decades of China-Africa debt restructuring

History shows that China’s approach to debt relief is ad hoc, and asset seizure is highly unlikely.

Incorporating gender into Chinese hydropower development in the Mekong region

Dr Pichamon Yeophantong shares her observations about how Chinese infrastructure companies approach gender in project development

The puzzle of China’s missing solar and wind finance along the Belt and Road (Part 2)

Despite strong domestic performance, the Chinese renewable energy sector’s lack of financial support overseas is multifaceted.

How will China handle multiple debt repayment crises?

Domestic commentators provide insight into Chinese thinking on the thorny issue

Losing Steam: China’s Overseas Development Finance in Global Energy

Overseas energy finance from China’s policy banks has been declining since 2017 due to a combination of demand and supply constraints. A rebound in 2020 is unlikely.

Panda Paw Dragon Claw

A conversation about China‘s footprint beyond its border