As doubts grow over China\u2019s vast \u201cBelt and Road\u201d trade infrastructure project, the EU is launching an alternative plan for Asia that it says will not saddle countries with debt they cannot repay.<\/p>\n
EU member countries are expected to sign off on the new \u201cAsia connectivity strategy\u201d \u2014 which aims to improve transport, digital and energy links while promoting environmental and labor standards \u2014 in time for a major summit of European and Asian leaders next month.<\/p>\n
Brussels insists the scheme is not a response to any other player, but its launch comes as the sheen fades on Beijing\u2019s \u201cnew Silk Road\u201d initiative, which envisions railways, roads and ports being built across the globe using billions of dollars in Chinese loans.<\/p>\n
Federica Mogherini, the EU\u2019s diplomatic chief, said talks have been going on for several months with a number of Asian countries that were \u201cinterested in looking at the European way\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur initiative will aim at creating jobs and economic growth and benefits for the local communities,\u201d she told reporters.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would not say if this is different from other\u2019s proposal but this is our proposal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new strategy comes after European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called for a more muscular EU foreign policy to match the bloc\u2019s economic clout, taking on not just US President Donald Trump\u2019s \u201cAmerica First\u201d approach but also China\u2019s energetic involvement in Africa and Asia.<\/p>\n
Maaike Okano-Heijmans, an EU-Asia relations expert at the Clingendael Institute in the Netherlands, said the initiative was a \u201cvery important step\u201d after criticism of the EU in some quarters that it has been slow to respond to Chinese soft power plays.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot accuse them of not having a vision any more. The challenge is how to turn this into something that\u2019s really an alternative to some countries. Because that requires money and more money and more money,\u201d Okano-Heijmans told AFP, saying \u201cnobody can rival Chinese money\u201d.<\/p>\n
Debt, digital concerns
\nPresident Xi Jinping said earlier this month that China\u2019s trade with Belt and Road countries had exceeded $5 trillion, with outward direct investment surpassing $60 billion.<\/p>\n
But some countries are beginning to question whether the strings attached to the money make it more of a burden than a benefit.<\/p>\n
While much of the hard detail of the EU scheme \u2014 including the vital question of finance \u2014 is yet to be worked out, the proposal stresses the importance of \u201chigh environmental and social standards\u201d and of the \u201cfiscal and financial sustainability of infrastructure projects\u201d.<\/p>\n
This appears designed to directly address a major criticism of the Belt and Road plan, launched in 2013, that the apparent Chinese largesse is effectively creating debt traps.<\/p>\n
These fears were highlighted last year when Sri Lanka had to grant a 99-year lease on a strategic port to Beijing over its inability to repay loans for the $1.4-billion project.<\/p>\n
Concerns have grown and, in August, Malaysia said it was shelving three Beijing-backed projects, including a $20 billion railway, while Pakistan \u2014 until recently an enthusiastic recipient of Chinese money \u2014 has vowed more transparency amid fears about the country\u2019s ability to repay loans.<\/p>\n
And as cyber security becomes an increasingly important consideration for governments around the world, the EU\u2019s insistence on transparency may prove more appealing than involvement in China\u2019s \u201cdigital Silk Road\u201d, said Philippe Le Corre of the Europe and Asia Programs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s basically allowing Chinese telecoms companies to build infrastructures in these countries, gifting access to portals and e-commerce platforms, anything digital,\u201d Le Corre told AFP.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re basically having a Chinese footprint on a very long term and you\u2019re not leaving an alternative.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some countries are beginning to realize, Le Corre said, that \u201cit\u2019s not good to put all your eggs in the same basket and that being a dependent of the Chinese empire is a big risk, certainly when it comes to controlling information and controlling technology\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As doubts grow over China\u2019s vast \u201cBelt and Road\u201d trade infrastructure project, the EU is launching an alternative plan for Asia that it says will not saddle countries with debt they cannot repay. EU member countries are expected to sign off on the new \u201cAsia connectivity strategy\u201d \u2014 which aims to improve transport, digital and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":108434,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7863],"tags":[10084,30104,37288,42604],"class_list":["post-108432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english-section","tag-china","tag-eu","tag-malaysia","tag-new-silk-road"],"yoast_head":"\n