All you need to know about China's OBOR summit

[Drumboy44]

Chinese president Xi Jinping’s ambitious project (a road and a sea route), which it is stressed is not about political alliances, has been called more a ‘symbolic portrayal than factual interpretation’.

It is at present an ‘umbrella of trade initiatives’, some of which are already under way. Bringing together ongoing and planned and future infra projects, it includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which India opposes, and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Corridor as well.

OBOR is all about trade, it makes no mention of any political alliance.

Implementation could take at least 30 to 40 years.

http://m.economictimes.com/news/int...mmit/chinas-grand-plan/slideshow/58656871.cms

One risk is that many countries in Asia and abroad (including the United States) are concerned about the geopolitical impact of the Belt and Road. Although Beijing has sought to allay these concerns in its latest plan, stressing the “win-win” potential of the initiative, its efforts will have important foreign policy implications for a number of key regional players, including Japan, India, and Russia. Moscow is particularly concerned about the initiative translating into increased Chinese influence in Central Asia, an area it has long viewed as within its sphere of influence and where Sino-Russia competition has been noticeably intensifying of late. Meanwhile, India has been especially alarmed by Chinese investments in Sri Lanka, which New Delhi likewise views as part of its backyard.

https://www.csis.org/analysis/building-china’s-“one-belt-one-road”

 

[Obreid]

I guess India voted by skipping the big show.


http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN18A07L

 

[Drumboy44]

I guess India voted by skipping the big show.


http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN18A07L

India is worried more broadly about China's economic and diplomatic expansion through Asia, and in particular across countries and waterways that it considers to be its sphere of influence.

How paranoid should India be?

 

[Obreid]

I guess India voted by skipping the big show.


http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN18A07L

India is worried more broadly about China's economic and diplomatic expansion through Asia, and in particular across countries and waterways that it considers to be its sphere of influence.

How paranoid should India be?

I don't know they used to be the leader of the nonaligned nation and they took pride in that. That group had faded from importance. They don't like being dictated to by China or Russia. Strangely they still trust GB and US more "I think".

The animosity between India and China has been ongoing for a millennia. Both fighting for trade and influence within the subcontinent and SE Asia. Mineral resources in Himalayan region probably driving part of this.

 

[krzepice1976]

NEW DELHI: The United Nations, close on the heels of OBOR Summit between May 14-16, has raised a red flag over economic, financial, social and environmental risks of China's Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) across a number of countries that are part of the mega connectivity project.
A recently concluded UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Study (UNESCAP) has warned of financial risks in countries in south and central Asia where China's announced investment value under BRI is high compared to the relative size of the economy of the recipient country.
China's commitment to Pakistan has now reached $ 62 billion. Similarly, the $24 billion China-Bangladesh agreement in October 2016 is equivalent to almost 20% of Bangladesh's GDP.

"External account indicators for some of these economies are relatively weak. In Kazakhstan, the current account deficit amounted to about 6% of GDP in 2016, while external debt stood at over 80% of GDP in 2015. In Pakistan, foreign external reserves are rather small at about 4 months of imports in early 2017," said the report.
On the social front, displacement and marginalization of local communities and indigenous groups is possible as a result of land grabbing and changing communities. Similarly, workers in industries that will no longer be competitive after opening up of markets could be marginalized. Poor working conditions, especially for migrant workers and construction workers in remote areas, are also a concern...More broadly, social unrest and ethnic conflicts could escalate in societies and areas where management of BRI projects is viewed as unfair and lacking a people-centred approach. Finally, despite notable economic benefits, it is not clear whether such gains will be inclusive," the study underlined.

On the environmental front, construction and operation of large-scale infrastructure projects under BRI is likely to result in land use changes and poorer air and water quality. In addition to the direct environmental impacts, new infrastructure, particularly transport infrastructure, may also cause indirect environmental impacts by facilitating access to areas previously reserved for environmental purposes, such as protected forest, the UN study said.




http://m.economictimes.com/news/defence/un-warns-about-financial-risks-in-chinas-one-belt-one-road-project/articleshow/58831087.cms