https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/324356/feed The initiative spearheaded by the Chinese government and endorsed by President Xi Jinping in late 2013 aims to improve trade and economic integration across Asia, Europe, and Africa. en https://assets-v2.i-scmp.com/production/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg Nicholas Ho Nicholas Ho Recently, I joined Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau Ying-wah in Malaysia for the official opening of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Kuala Lumpur. The occasion marked an elevation in Hong Kong’s economic and trade ties with Malaysia and the broader Southeast Asian region. During the visit, Hong Kong’s Belt and Road Office hosted a forum that brought government officials, business leaders and professionals together for substantive discussions – underscoring... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3365366/3-key-belt-and-road-connectivities-hong-kong-drives?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3365366/3-key-belt-and-road-connectivities-hong-kong-drives?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 02 Sep 2026 21:30:13 +0000 Ashfaq Zaman Ashfaq Zaman The Rohingya people have endured one of the world’s most protracted, yet least visible, humanitarian crises. Nearly one million Rohingya refugees live in what were supposed to be temporary camps in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar. They still have little prospect of returning to Myanmar’s Rakhine state. But at a recent conference in Dhaka, the Rohingya people were, for the first time, given a voice. Their message was clear: they do not want more aid. They need to go home. China is well placed to help... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3327042/why-china-should-lead-commission-phased-rohingya-repatriation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3327042/why-china-should-lead-commission-phased-rohingya-repatriation?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Sep 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Zhao Ziwen Zhao Ziwen China is closely monitoring social unrest in Nepal, a strategic partner and key point in Beijing’s global infrastructure and investment initiative, following the resignation of prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli. Observers warned that Beijing should be prepared for further instability in the region, citing weak governance and potential external influence in political transitions. The unrest was initially triggered by a social media ban last week, and soon grew into a wider anti-corruption movement... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3325088/beijing-weighs-risks-social-unrest-rocks-strategic-partner-nepal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3325088/beijing-weighs-risks-social-unrest-rocks-strategic-partner-nepal?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Sep 2025 14:44:15 +0000 Ralph Jennings Ralph Jennings Investments under China’s Belt and Road Initiative surged in the first half of the year – particularly for projects in Central Asia related to metals and mining – leading some analysts to conclude Beijing is seeking access to critical natural resources as a precaution against escalatory trade restrictions from the United States. The 150 countries taking part in the global infrastructure initiative received a combined US$124 billion in investments and construction contracts from January to June,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/china-economy/article/3323354/china-steps-belt-and-road-initiative-funding-focus-central-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/china-economy/article/3323354/china-steps-belt-and-road-initiative-funding-focus-central-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Aug 2025 15:00:09 +0000 Zhou Xin Zhou Xin Without alluding to the country’s tech rivalry with the US, Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called on the world to “enhance coordination and alignment” as a way to make AI more inclusive, which would benefit more people and countries. In his keynote speech on Saturday at the opening of the three-day World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Li proposed the establishment of an international organisation to form a global governance framework for AI, unifying nations’ different regulatory... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3319854/china-champions-inclusive-ai-framework-win-hearts-and-minds-developing-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3319854/china-champions-inclusive-ai-framework-win-hearts-and-minds-developing-world?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jul 2025 23:00:08 +0000 Kawala Xie Kawala Xie Last month’s Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence meeting served not only as a curtain-raiser for the bloc’s summit in the autumn, but also as a test of Beijing’s broader ambition to promote a Global South-empowered multipolar world order. Like Brics – the grouping of developing countries established by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – the Global South-oriented SCO is a showcase for China’s home-ground diplomacy. Beijing has increasingly relied on these platforms to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3317031/can-india-block-chinas-leadership-global-south-based-alliances-sco?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3317031/can-india-block-chinas-leadership-global-south-based-alliances-sco?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jul 2025 22:00:12 +0000 Luna Sun,He Huifeng,Ralph Jennings Luna Sun,He Huifeng,Ralph Jennings Watching as missile bombardments threaten key shipping routes and blow up some of their trade deals in the Middle East, with Iran at the centre of the firestorm, Chinese exporters are feeling the heat. After finalising a deal with an Iranian buyer she met at China’s Canton Fair in April, Miya Yu, a trader of light industrial goods – valves, toys, aluminium containers, etc – collected the necessary materials to begin production and fill the order. Production never began. The contracted client... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3316085/boom-goes-deal-war-threatens-chinas-iran-investments-middle-east-still-beckons?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3316085/boom-goes-deal-war-threatens-chinas-iran-investments-middle-east-still-beckons?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2025 22:00:14 +0000 The United States has a “rare” opportunity to become a key partner for Indonesia in areas such as emerging technology and digital infrastructure despite Jakarta’s close economic ties with China, a study has claimed. But Washington needs a more ambitious and strategic form of statecraft to do so, according to the report from the Centre for a New American Security, a Washington think tank. The researchers argued that Indonesia had become a “key front” in the US-China rivalry to shape critical... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3306291/could-more-focused-us-gain-edge-over-china-contest-indonesian-tech-business?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3306291/could-more-focused-us-gain-edge-over-china-contest-indonesian-tech-business?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Apr 2025 04:00:13 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to embark on a swing around Southeast Asia next month as Beijing accelerates its efforts to deepen neighbourhood ties amid regional anxiety about US foreign policy during Donald Trump’s second administration. Diplomatic sources said Xi would be likely to set off in mid-April, with stops in Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia. One source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said plans were being made for the Chinese leader to spend three days in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3304518/china-woos-neighbours-xi-said-be-planning-3-country-tour-april?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3304518/china-woos-neighbours-xi-said-be-planning-3-country-tour-april?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Mar 2025 03:55:59 +0000 Donald Trump has been upending the world order since his return to the White House in January. In the second instalment of a three-part series on the implications of Trump’s foreign policy, we look at his move to halt aid to South Africa. US President Donald Trump’s order to cut off aid to South Africa amid a row over Pretoria’s new land reform law could push the continent’s most advanced economy towards China and alienate much of the Global South. That is the assessment of observers, who say it... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3302520/trump-cut-aid-south-africa-will-it-tilt-balance-chinas-favour?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3302520/trump-cut-aid-south-africa-will-it-tilt-balance-chinas-favour?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Mar 2025 22:00:17 +0000 Yujie Xue Yujie Xue Sitting in his lavish living room in Almaty, Kenges Rakishev – one of the wealthiest men in Kazakhstan – gets excited about electric vehicles (EVs), saying he drives a Zeekr and his father-in-law owns a Hongqi. The two Chinese auto brands are just a small part of his automotive menagerie, but the chairman of the Fincraft Group – with businesses in oil and gas, metals mining and processing – plans to add more to his collection. The 45-year-old just visited China in February, where he had the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/china-business/article/3301654/why-tycoon-kazakhstan-wants-partner-china-ride-overwhelming-ev-wave?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/china-business/article/3301654/why-tycoon-kazakhstan-wants-partner-china-ride-overwhelming-ev-wave?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 09 Mar 2025 23:30:11 +0000 In the heart of West Africa, where the world’s finest cocoa beans are cultivated, Chinese investment has built new processing factories in Ivory Coast and Ghana. On the outskirts of Abidjan, Ivory Coast’s economic capital, China Light Industry Nanning Design Engineering has finished building the nation’s largest cocoa plant and a cocoa bean warehouse. It comes from one of the two deals the Chinese company signed with Ivory Coast in 2019 to build processing plants. The other is in the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3298187/china-and-chocolate-factory-investment-ivory-coast-helps-secure-cocoa-edge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3298187/china-and-chocolate-factory-investment-ivory-coast-helps-secure-cocoa-edge?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 11 Feb 2025 07:00:07 +0000 Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari will start a five-day visit to China on Tuesday, with counterterrorism and economic cooperation expected to top the agenda. “At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, President Asif Ali Zardari of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan will pay a state visit to China from February 4 to 8,” the Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday, without offering further details. Zardari’s trip comes as Pakistan grapples with security and economic problems that also challenge... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3297160/china-pakistan-ties-presidents-focus-terrorism-and-economy-amid-security-issues?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3297160/china-pakistan-ties-presidents-focus-terrorism-and-economy-amid-security-issues?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Feb 2025 04:00:08 +0000 One of Russia’s key trading channels with China is facing serious snags. That is a result of burdens stemming from Russia’s war-driven economy, which have fuelled a big slowdown in the nation’s rail industry – a vital means of trade between Moscow and Beijing. Russia’s rail industry is in its worst slowdown since the Great Financial Crisis, with the downtrend “still going strong”, according to an analysis from the Russian research firm MMI Research. Freight volume transported by Russian... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3292078/russias-overheated-economy-squeezing-one-moscows-key-trading-channels-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3292078/russias-overheated-economy-squeezing-one-moscows-key-trading-channels-china?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:12:21 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping called for reform of global institutions and emphasised his government’s shared views with Brazil on international matters, including the Ukraine war, ahead of his state visit to the South American nation. In a wide-ranging opinion piece published in Brazil’s leading newspaper Folha de S. Paulo, Xi stressed the importance of increasing representation for Global South countries in multilateral organisations including the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3286963/xi-jinping-touts-shared-views-brazil-ukraine-other-matters-ahead-g20?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3286963/xi-jinping-touts-shared-views-brazil-ukraine-other-matters-ahead-g20?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Nov 2024 19:33:46 +0000 Brazil has decided against joining China’s Belt and Road Initiative, instead seeking alternative ways to collaborate with Chinese investors, a top government adviser said on Monday. Celso Amorim, special presidential adviser for international affairs, told Brazilian newspaper O Globo that Brazil wants to “take the relationship with China to a new level, without having to sign an accession contract”. “We are not entering into a treaty,” Amorim said, explaining that Brazil does not want to take... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3284244/brazil-backs-away-joining-chinas-belt-and-road-keeps-funding-door-ajar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3284244/brazil-backs-away-joining-chinas-belt-and-road-keeps-funding-door-ajar?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Oct 2024 01:35:50 +0000 Chinese cement makers are looking to growth potential in Africa to make up for a shrinking domestic market amid a protracted property crisis and slow economic recovery at home. Thanks to its investment in Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Mozambique, major cement producer West China Cement Limited said its African operation was the major contributor of profits to the overall business last year. “High quality development in Africa will be a major focus in 2024 and beyond,”... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3275010/chinese-cement-firms-look-boom-african-construction-make-woes-home?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3275010/chinese-cement-firms-look-boom-african-construction-make-woes-home?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Aug 2024 08:00:09 +0000 A Chinese mining company has revealed that it lost 12kg (26lbs) of gold – worth US$900,000 – in an armed robbery in Ghana earlier this year. Shenzhen-listed gold mining firm Beijing Xiaocheng Technology Stock Co disclosed in its half-year financial report released on Wednesday that “five to six” suspects had been arrested and detained at a police station in Ghana. Security agencies in the West African nation were “still searching for the whereabouts of the gold”, according to the company. Africa... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3274727/chinese-firm-says-us900000-gold-stolen-armed-attack-mine-ghana?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3274727/chinese-firm-says-us900000-gold-stolen-armed-attack-mine-ghana?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Aug 2024 08:00:12 +0000 China needs to establish an effective deterrent and improve its intelligence capabilities to better protect its expanding overseas interests, according to a senior military expert. Liu Qiang, a retired People’s Liberation Army officer who served twice with United Nations peacekeeping forces, said it was “necessary” to explore military protection and overseas troop deployments, even though they are “a last resort”. “It requires careful planning and cautious practice. But nevertheless, this is an... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3274692/china-needs-deterrent-force-protect-its-expanding-overseas-interests-expert?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3274692/china-needs-deterrent-force-protect-its-expanding-overseas-interests-expert?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Aug 2024 06:00:09 +0000 One of the United States’ key tools to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative is running into legal obstacles that hamper its ability to compete with Beijing in regions such as Latin America and the Indo-Pacific, a House panel was told on Tuesday. The US International Development Finance Corporation (or DFC) was created in 2018 after the merger of several US government financing and investment mechanisms that focus on developing countries. The idea at the time was to counter China’s belt and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3261831/china-us-relations-american-funding-tool-struggles-compete-belt-and-road-particularly-latin-america?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3261831/china-us-relations-american-funding-tool-struggles-compete-belt-and-road-particularly-latin-america?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 May 2024 06:00:25 +0000 When Qian Qichen, then China’s foreign minister, visited Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania in January 1991, he set the ball rolling for what Chinese state media called an “unstoppable trend”. Since then Chinese foreign ministers have chosen African nations as their first overseas stop each year, even after Qian left the role in 1998. For 34 consecutive years the diplomatic convention has been followed through by every Chinese foreign minister, from Tang Jiaxuan to Li Zhaoxing, Yang Jiechi and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3252446/why-after-more-3-decades-chinas-foreign-minister-still-starts-year-trip-africa?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3252446/why-after-more-3-decades-chinas-foreign-minister-still-starts-year-trip-africa?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Feb 2024 14:00:09 +0000 The Taliban has completed its first road link between Afghanistan and China, but analysts expect Beijing to be cautious about giving its war-torn neighbour full access to its land border because of security concerns over terrorists and separatist militants. At this stage, China has no customs facilities in the area – where Afghanistan meets the autonomous Chinese region of Xinjiang – and has said nothing to suggest it intends to add a formal crossing point. Currently, only Chinese border guards... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3249931/why-china-wary-opening-afghanistans-new-road-xinjiang?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3249931/why-china-wary-opening-afghanistans-new-road-xinjiang?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Jan 2024 14:00:09 +0000 It’s been 10 years since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was launched, and later this month, China will host the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing. Journalists and scholars from around the world have been reflecting on the 10 years of the belt and road. Among those reflections, Western narratives that focus on certain individual cases or take a particular slant rate the belt and road poorly. The initiative is arguably the first concept for global cooperation... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3236499/10-years-belt-and-road-showcase-chinas-peaceful-rise?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3236499/10-years-belt-and-road-showcase-chinas-peaceful-rise?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Oct 2023 01:30:17 +0000 Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing next month for the latest high-level engagement between the two neighbours amid tensions with the West. In his meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday, Putin said he would attend the Belt and Road Forum in the Chinese capital, a highlight of Xi’s diplomatic agenda for the year. A mega project proposed by Xi 10 years ago, the Belt and Road Initiative is aimed at expanding China’s... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3235277/china-russia-ties-vladimir-putin-confirms-he-will-meet-xi-jinping-beijing-belt-and-road-forum-next?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3235277/china-russia-ties-vladimir-putin-confirms-he-will-meet-xi-jinping-beijing-belt-and-road-forum-next?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Sep 2023 05:01:51 +0000 A team of Chinese and Italian researchers has restored parts of a 300-year-old Catholic church in Venice, Italy, using modern nanotechnology. The Church of Santa Maria di Nazareth, which overlooks the Grand Canal and is a prime example of Venetian Baroque architecture, is the beneficiary of a patented method developed to consolidate, or treat, marble stones damaged by time and the elements. The research was funded by the Veneto regional government, the National Natural Science Foundation of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/science/article/3232017/chinese-italian-nanotechnology-research-helps-preserve-stone-and-repair-historic-church-scalzi?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/science/article/3232017/chinese-italian-nanotechnology-research-helps-preserve-stone-and-repair-historic-church-scalzi?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Aug 2023 08:00:14 +0000 China and Russia are showing growing interest in Eritrea, a small African country in a strategic location but whose president is being shunned in the West for his autocratic governance. Its geopolitical significance in the Horn of Africa and easy access to the Red Sea had attracted the attention of Beijing and Moscow, observers said, with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki endearing his country to the big powers and earning finance for projects and investments. In 2021, Eritrea joined the Belt... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3231129/china-and-russia-pursue-eritrea-its-strategic-location-africa-resources-and-transport-potential?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3231129/china-and-russia-pursue-eritrea-its-strategic-location-africa-resources-and-transport-potential?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Aug 2023 08:00:09 +0000 As the West steps up its diplomatic ventures into Africa, China has renewed its commitment to the continent, with debt relief and reconstruction pledges for Ethiopia and calls on new administrations in Kenya and Nigeria. The commitments came as part of senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi’s four-nation African tour, which will also include a visit to South Africa. During an unannounced stop in Addis Ababa on Friday, Wang said China supported Ethiopia’s domestic reconstruction and economic recovery... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3228718/china-africa-relations-wang-yi-pledges-beijing-will-help-ethiopia-recover-and-boost-ties-kenya-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3228718/china-africa-relations-wang-yi-pledges-beijing-will-help-ethiopia-recover-and-boost-ties-kenya-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Jul 2023 09:27:26 +0000 A city in eastern China's Jiangsu province plans to use the mainland's sovereign digital currency in cross-border trade with Belt and Road countries, as local governments warm up to the electronic money known as the e-CNY. Xuzhou, the starting point of many Europe-bound freight trains from China, has published a plan that promotes the e-CNY, including its usage in cross-border trade. The city has 18 regular cross-border railway lines to 21 countries in Europe and Asia. The Xuzhou municipal... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/tech/article/3218180/china-digital-currency-jiangsu-city-leverages-logistics-hub-status-promote-e-cny-belt-and-road-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/tech/article/3218180/china-digital-currency-jiangsu-city-leverages-logistics-hub-status-promote-e-cny-belt-and-road-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Apr 2023 10:48:21 +0000 What kind of Chinese investment might win over Cambodians’ hearts? The benefits, costs and public reception of two landmark projects may help to answer that question. For while people seem enthused to use a new road, they are uneasy about economic change in the city of Sihanoukville, which lies at one end of it. Cambodia has heartily embraced the first motorway linking the capital Phnom Penh to the coastal province of Preah Sihanouk since it was opened to the public for a one-month free trial... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/opinion/article/3199282/why-cambodia-has-mixed-feelings-about-china-built-phnom-penh-sihanoukville-road?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/opinion/article/3199282/why-cambodia-has-mixed-feelings-about-china-built-phnom-penh-sihanoukville-road?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 12 Nov 2022 01:00:12 +0000 A high-speed railway project in Indonesia, part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, is on track for a 2023 launch despite ongoing negotiations between the two countries about the project being over-budget, officials said on Thursday. President Joko Widodo inspected a new railway station, where the consortium building the railway, PT KCIC, displayed a stationary China-made bullet train on the tracks. The 142-km line will connect the capital Jakarta with one of the country’s largest cities,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3195825/indonesias-china-built-high-speed-rail-project-track?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3195825/indonesias-china-built-high-speed-rail-project-track?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 13 Oct 2022 07:45:48 +0000 Western nations may have come up with various initiatives to counter growing Chinese and Russian influence in Africa, but African leaders have been “disappointed” by the way they go about it. This was evident at the African Adaptation Summit in Rotterdam last week when European leaders failed to turn up for a meeting to fundraise for Africa’s climate adaptation projects. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, the only European leader to attend in person, said: “I would have loved to have more of my... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3192129/europes-patronising-efforts-counter-russia-and-china-africa?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3192129/europes-patronising-efforts-counter-russia-and-china-africa?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Sep 2022 04:00:23 +0000 China’s foreign direct investment into Latin American and the Caribbean tumbled last year, with the growing rivalry between Washington and Beijing “greatly affecting capital flows” from the world’s No 2 economy. Even so, analysts say the Belt and Road Initiative remains an effective tool for deeper Chinese engagement in the region at a time when the United States and others “don’t offer feasible alternatives”. Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) accounted for 6.5 per cent of the region’s... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3182125/china-us-rivalry-dampens-belt-and-road-investment-latin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3182125/china-us-rivalry-dampens-belt-and-road-investment-latin?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Jun 2022 12:00:17 +0000 Lying in China’s far west, between one of the world’s highest mountain ranges and largest deserts, the city of Kashgar has long been touted as the “Shenzhen of the West” – referring to the country’s most famous boom town, on the border of Hong Kong. Bordered by Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, the city was once an important trading hub on the Silk Road. But recent attempts to revive its fortunes, including by designating it a “special economic zone” 12 years ago, have come to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/china-economy/article/3180900/will-chinas-rail-link-between-xinjiang-kyrgyzstan-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/china-economy/article/3180900/will-chinas-rail-link-between-xinjiang-kyrgyzstan-and?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Jun 2022 16:00:25 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping has sent a message to his counterpart in Kazakhstan, saying Beijing opposes any attempts by foreign forces to stir up trouble in the country. Xi told President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev that China was willing to support the country’s efforts to resolve the crisis. Xi’s message came after days of unrest in the Central Asian nation, a development that has triggered fears that it might spill over the border into Xinjiang. “China resolutely opposes any forces that undermine... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3162596/chinese-president-xi-jinping-sends-message-support-kazakhstans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3162596/chinese-president-xi-jinping-sends-message-support-kazakhstans?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Jan 2022 15:00:18 +0000 The deadly terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001, prompted an outcry from around the world: “We are all Americans.” Washington’s policies realigned around fighting terrorism and bilateral relationships strengthened or crumbled depending on where other governments stood. As part of a series about the legacy of September 11, Jevans Nyabiage looks at the implications for China in Africa from the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan. Kabul may be thousands of miles... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3145936/how-talibans-success-afghanistan-could-threaten-chinas?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3145936/how-talibans-success-afghanistan-could-threaten-chinas?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Sep 2021 16:02:12 +0000 China started a joint anti-terrorism exercise with Tajikistan on Wednesday, amid growing security concerns in the region following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. While both China and Tajikistan share borders with Afghanistan, the latter’s 1,344km (835-mile) border in particular has rendered it one of the most vulnerable to the rising instability next door after the insurgent group took power. The “Counterterrorism Collaboration 2021” exercises, led by China’s Ministry of Public Security... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3145532/china-conducts-anti-terror-drill-tajikistan-afghan-spillover?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3145532/china-conducts-anti-terror-drill-tajikistan-afghan-spillover?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Aug 2021 14:45:10 +0000 A Chinese construction firm announced the suspension of work on a hydropower project in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, days after a deadly attack on a bus in which 12 people, including nine Chinese workers were killed. The China Gezhouba Group Company (CGGC) suspended work on the Dasu hydro project and laid off all Pakistani workers, according to a statement. Earlier in the day, Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that security measures for Chinese nationals in the country... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3141527/pakistan-bus-blast-chinese-firm-halts-work-dam-fires-local?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3141527/pakistan-bus-blast-chinese-firm-halts-work-dam-fires-local?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jul 2021 12:45:09 +0000 Tanzania is negotiating with Chinese investors to revive stalled multibillion-dollar projects, days after President Samia Suluhu Hassan talked by telephone to her Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Hassan announced at the weekend that the East African nation has resumed talks with China’s largest port operator – China Merchants Holdings International – to finally begin construction of the US$10 billion Bagamoyo mega port and special economic zone. Work on the zone – aimed at transforming the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3139083/multibillion-dollar-china-tanzania-projects-could-be-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3139083/multibillion-dollar-china-tanzania-projects-could-be-back?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jun 2021 15:12:25 +0000 A European state financial institution is ready to refinance US$809 million of Montenegro’s debt to China, allowing the tiny Adriatic republic to make savings and cut interest rates, the country’s finance minister said on Thursday. China sees the Western Balkans, which includes Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia, as well as Montenegro, as part of its Belt and Road Initiative to expand Chinese influence. Beijing has invested billions in the region, mainly through soft loans in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3137748/montenegro-final-phase-talks-europe-refinance-us809-million-debt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3137748/montenegro-final-phase-talks-europe-refinance-us809-million-debt?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Jun 2021 18:02:36 +0000 A suicide bombing in southwest Pakistan may not have been aimed at China but it highlights security risks with Beijing’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative project in the region, observers said. At least five people died and a dozen were wounded on Wednesday when a bomber attacked a hotel in Quetta where Chinese ambassador Nong Rong was staying. Nong had been attending a meeting in another part of the city and was due to return to the hotel when the attack occurred, Pakistani officials said. No... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3130866/pakistan-bombing-puts-spotlight-security-chinas-flagship-belt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3130866/pakistan-bombing-puts-spotlight-security-chinas-flagship-belt?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Apr 2021 23:00:11 +0000 The European Union says it will not pay off Montenegro’s near-US$1 billion debts to China, rejecting the tiny Balkan nation’s repeated pleas for help. A spokesman for the EU told the South China Morning Post that it “does not repay loans of partners which they took from third parties”, although he did express concern “over the socioeconomic and financial effects of some of China’s investments in Montenegro”. He continued that Brussels was willing to work with the country, a candidate for EU... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3129263/eu-says-it-wont-pay-montenegros-billion-dollar-highway-debt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3129263/eu-says-it-wont-pay-montenegros-billion-dollar-highway-debt?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Apr 2021 16:00:26 +0000 Malaysia said on Monday that it had accepted an increase of nearly 14 per cent in the estimated construction cost for the proposed East Coast Rail Link (ECRL), part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, as the length of the route would be slightly longer. The Malaysian unit of China Communications Construction Co Ltd, CCC-ECRL, is contracted to build the line. First proposed in 2017, the project linking the east and west coast of the Malaysian peninsula was suspended a year later after an... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3128367/malaysia-agrees-cost-increase-china-backed-east-coast-rail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3128367/malaysia-agrees-cost-increase-china-backed-east-coast-rail?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Apr 2021 09:17:21 +0000 Hundreds of Chinese agricultural experts are working with farmers and specialists across Africa to help them improve crop yields after Beijing promised to buy more of their produce. Wu Peng, director general of the Africa affairs department at China’s foreign ministry, said on Tuesday that about a dozen agricultural experts had arrived in Burundi where they were welcomed by President Evariste Ndayishimiye. “I hope China-Burundi agricultural cooperation can reach a new high through the efforts of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3116140/china-africa-relations-chinese-agriculture-experts-help-boost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3116140/china-africa-relations-chinese-agriculture-experts-help-boost?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Jan 2021 22:00:19 +0000 More than six years ago, Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Rwanda hatched a grand plan to build an ambitious standard gauge railway line linking their countries from the Kenyan coast and eventually stretching to the mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo. The rail link was expected to be completed by 2018 but so far only its first phase – from the port city of Mombasa to Kenya’s capital Nairobi and then on to Naivasha, a town in the Central Rift Valley – has been done, with US$4.7 billion... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3114551/african-railways-feel-pinch-chinas-belt-and-road-funding?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3114551/african-railways-feel-pinch-chinas-belt-and-road-funding?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Dec 2020 12:00:19 +0000 China has urged Australia not to discriminate against its Belt and Road Initiative, as a new set of laws puts Beijing’s agreements with local governments in Canberra’s cross hairs. Frigid ties between the two countries slipped lower this week with the passage of laws on Tuesday that could allow Australia’s foreign ministry to scrap agreements made between local authorities and foreign states. A 2018 memorandum of understanding between the Victoria state government and Beijing is likely to be the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3113256/chinas-belt-and-road-initiative-faces-fresh-challenge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3113256/chinas-belt-and-road-initiative-faces-fresh-challenge?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Dec 2020 21:00:08 +0000 Most studies of Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative to grow global trade have focused on the goals that China seeks to achieve, oftentimes at the expense of host countries. It is viewed through such a lens largely because of the scale of financing and number of players involved. In 2016, the Chinese government allocated more than US$900 billion to belt and road projects through facilities such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Silk Road Fund and the China Development... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/opinion/article/3112665/tale-two-belt-and-road-initiative-port-projects-malaysia-shows?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/opinion/article/3112665/tale-two-belt-and-road-initiative-port-projects-malaysia-shows?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 07 Dec 2020 03:00:12 +0000 Australia’s parliament is set to pass legislation that gives the federal government power to veto any agreement struck with foreign states, a move likely to anger China and intensify a bitter diplomatic spat between the two countries. The law allows the Commonwealth to block any agreement between Australian states, councils or institutions and a foreign government, such as a controversial 2018 deal between the state of Victoria and China. An earlier version of this Reuters article incorrectly... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/australasia/article/3112365/china-australia-relations-canberras-approval-veto-powers-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/australasia/article/3112365/china-australia-relations-canberras-approval-veto-powers-over?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Dec 2020 04:51:48 +0000 The coronavirus pandemic will accelerate investment in low-carbon and climate-resilient infrastructure, and projects that enhance digital connectivity and public health, in countries covered by China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), benefiting Chinese project lenders and investors, according to Moody’s. This is despite a decline in total financing by China to these countries, as the coronavirus crisis has dealt a heavy blow to the global economy and forced BRI governments to prioritise... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3111059/coronavirus-pandemic-spur-chinese-investment-green-projects-belt-and-road?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3111059/coronavirus-pandemic-spur-chinese-investment-green-projects-belt-and-road?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Nov 2020 23:45:09 +0000 For the first time, India’s foreign secretary and army chief made a joint visit to Naypyidaw earlier this week, fuelling talk that Myanmar has stepped up its efforts to balance China’s rising influence and New Delhi is ready to respond. In all previous Indian administrations, these officials would visit Myanmar at least once in their tenure, usually separately. But foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and the Chief of Army Staff M.M. Naravane went together to Myanmar on Sunday and Monday,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3104926/india-responds-myanmars-call-closer-ties-balance-out-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3104926/india-responds-myanmars-call-closer-ties-balance-out-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Oct 2020 13:46:20 +0000 As China and the United States spar at the United Nations over the coronavirus pandemic and international order, their deepening rivalry has accelerated fears in Asia of a new and more complex cold war. In their addresses at the mostly virtual UN General Assembly on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump called for China to be held accountable for the global health crisis and urged countries to put themselves first, while Chinese President Xi Jinping criticised the US indirectly for undermining... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3102739/china-us-rivalry-asian-countries-fear-getting-caught-new-cold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3102739/china-us-rivalry-asian-countries-fear-getting-caught-new-cold?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Sep 2020 16:00:14 +0000