China's Belt And Road Initiative

Pressured by China, Pakistan plans security firm to guard Chinese nationals

Amid rising attacks on Chinese workers in Pakistan, Beijing pressures Islamabad to act. Pakistan now eyes a security firm, sparking questions on sovereignty and deepening tensions

As China faces attacks in Pakistan, 20 Chinese killed, 34 hurt since 2021

The attacks have frustrated China, reportedly leading it to press Pakistan's federal government to open formal negotiations for a joint security management system

Nepal signs BRI cooperation agreement with China during PM Oli's visit

Nepal and China on Wednesday signed the much-awaited Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Cooperation Framework, an agreement which is expected to pave the way for the implementation of the BRI projects. The agreement was inked during Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli's official visit to China - his first official visit to that country after assuming office for the fourth time. "Today, we signed the Framework for Belt & Roads Cooperation. As my official visit to China concludes, I am honoured to reflect on the bilateral talks with Premier Li Qiang, discussions with NPC Chairman Zhang Leji, and the highly fruitful meeting with President Xi Jinping," Prime Minister Oli posted on X. The Nepal-China economic cooperation will further strengthen under the Belt and Road Framework Cooperation, he added. The BRI framework agreement was inked by Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai and Liu Sushe of the National Development and Reform Commission of China, according to the Prime Minister's ...

Nepal rules out loans for BRI projects; emphasises grants, consensus

Nepal on Saturday said it is not in a position to take loans for projects under China's Belt and Road Initiative and will instead primarily rely on grants, moving forward based on mutual consensus among all stakeholders. Speaking to reporters at Tribhuvan International Airport upon returning from a three-day visit to China, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba clarified Nepal's position on the implementation of BRI projects. Her visit was aimed at preparing for Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli's upcoming official trip to China starting December 2. "Nepal signed the BRI framework agreement in 2017, but discussions regarding its implementation modality are still ongoing. The projects under BRI will only move forward based on agreements and mutual understanding between Nepal, China, and all stakeholders within Nepal," Deuba said. In response to a question, the foreign minister said that Nepal is currently not in a position to take loans under the multi-billion dollar infrastructure ...

Under China's glare, Pakistan launches Balochistan offensive to save CPEC

Facing China's mounting demands for better security after attacks on its citizens and CPEC delays, Pakistan is under intense pressure to safeguard Beijing's interests

'Don't trust Pak soldiers': Xi faces flak for Chinese deaths in Pakistan

Many Chinese companies in Pakistan have reportedly turned to Chinese security engineers to gather intelligence amid inadequate local security arrangements

India reiterates opposition to China's Belt and Road Initiative at SCO meet

India on Wednesday once again refused to endorse China's ambitious 'One Belt One Road' initiative, becoming the only country in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) not to support the controversial connectivity project. A joint communique unveiled at the end of the SCO's Council of Heads of Government conclave hosted by Islamabad said Russia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan reaffirmed their support for the Chinese connectivity initiative. It said the countries noted ongoing work on the implementation of the project, including efforts to link the Eurasian Economic Union with the One Road One Initiative (OBOR). India has been refusing to endorse OBOR in previous SCO conclaves as well. India has been severely critical of the OBOR, previously known as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as the project includes the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. There has been growing glo

IMF's new demand set to dissuade Chinese investments into Pakistan

The IMF's condition comes as Prime Minster Shehbaz Sharif is trying to convince Chinese companies to shift more industries into Pakistan thereby giving a fresh momentum to projects

Why is China set to hold live-fire military drills along Myanmar border?

In response to growing security concerns, China had held two live-fire drills in April along its border with Myanmar

BRI implementation plan discussed with China: Nepal Dy PM Shrestha

Nepal and China have made progress in moving forward with the implementation plan of the Beijing-backed Belt and Road Initiative projects in the Himalayan nation, Deputy Prime Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha said here on Monday. Shrestha, who is also the Minister for Foreign Affairs, returned home on Monday, after concluding an eight-day official visit to China from March 25 to April 1. He held discussions with Chinese officials on matters relating to giving final shape to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Implementation Plan for its actual implementation. An understanding has already been reached with China regarding the BRI Implementation Plan during the visit of our Prime Minister to China and talks have moved forward during my visit as per the understanding, he said. Under the BRI, Nepal is free to select development projects as per its choice, he added. Responding to a question, he said We prefer grant assistance under the BRI but both options including, grant and loan are op

China's anti-graft body to probe corruption in Belt and Road Initiative

President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative under which China doled out billions of dollars of investments will for the first time come under the scanner of the country's anti-graft body amid allegations of corruption and the projects turning into debt traps for small and medium countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Fighting corruption related to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) will be among the priorities for the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection's work report for 2024 (CCDI), the ruling Communist Party of China's (CPC) powerful anti-graft body, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported. The CCDI report released on Sunday stressed the need to eradicate the breeding grounds for corruption, deepen the system reforms and strengthen the institutions for discipline inspection and supervision, and enhance the organisational development of Party discipline inspection commissions and supervision agencies, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The report, whi

Nepal, China to sign implementation plan of BRI projects: Nepal's Deputy PM

Nepal and China will sign the implementation plan of the Belt and Road Initiative very soon, Deputy Prime Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha said on Saturday, nearly seven years after the two neighbours inked an agreement to undertake ambitious Beijing-backed infrastructure projects in the Himalayan nation. Once we sign the implementation plan, we will move into the implementation phase, Shrestha, also the Minister for Home Affairs said while addressing an event here that is part of the Silk Road Youth Forum and South Asian Cooperation Conference. He said the two countries will sign the implementation plan of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) very soon without specifying any date. His statement came as Sun Haiyan, a senior leader of China's ruling Communist Party, was visiting Nepal and meeting the country's top leaders. The signing of the BRI implementation plan is the key to negotiate and execute the projects under the initiative. Nepal and China signed a Memorandum of Understandin

China fully backs sovereignty of Maldives, says President Mohamed Muizzu

During his just-concluded visit to China, Muizzu, regarded as a pro-China leader, sought to align Maldives closer to Beijing and both countries elevated their ties to a strategic partnership

China's Wagner? Country hires private security to protect foreign assets

The primary focus of the contractor will be on facilitating China's Belt and Road Initiative in West Asia and Africa

Hope to work with China in upgrading shipyards and ports says Fiji leader

Fiji's leader says that after meeting with China's President Xi Jinping, he hopes to collaborate with China on upgrading his nation's shipyards and ports. Sitiveni Rabuka made the remarks to lawmakers in Parliament on Wednesday. Rabuka is generally viewed as leaning less toward China than his predecessor Frank Bainimarama, and in a visit to Australia last month, Rabuka emphasized he was more comfortable dealing with traditional friends such as Australia. But in his Wednesday remarks, Rabuka highlighted the economic ties his small South Pacific island nation has forged with China over 50 years of diplomatic relations. Rabuka said that in his meeting with Xi last week on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in San Francisco, he discussed how China's assistance was pivotal to Fiji's post-COVID-19 economic recovery. Rabuka said China's Belt and Road Initiative aligned with Fiji's development agenda and that China had contributed toward a number of grants a

China welcomes Arab, Muslim foreign ministers for talk on war in Gaza

China's top diplomat welcomed four Arab foreign ministers and the Indonesian one to Beijing on Monday, saying his country would work with our brothers and sisters" in the Arab and Islamic world to try to end the war in Gaza as soon as possible. The ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority and Indonesia chose to start a tour of world capitals in Beijing, a testament to both China's growing geopolitical influence and its longstanding support for the Palestinians. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the foreign diplomats that their decision to start in Beijing shows their high level of trust in his nation. China is a good friend and brother of Arab and Islamic countries, Wang said in opening remarks at a state guest house before their talks began. We have always firmly safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of Arab (and) Islamic countries and have always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people. China has long backed the ...

Ready to join US multilateral initiatives, Xi invites Biden to join BRI

Chinese President Xi Jinping has invited his US counterpart Joe Biden to take part in his pet global initiative the BRI and expressed his readiness to take part in the Washington-backed multilateral cooperate initiatives. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) initiated by Xi in 2015 in which China is reported to have invested over a USD trillion has been widely criticised by the US, India and other countries as several countries including Sri Lanka and Pakistan, its biggest beneficiaries, reeled under mounting debt burden. The US, India and many of the EU countries are not part of the BRI. On the sidelines of the G20 Summit in New Delhi in September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with President Biden and other world leaders launched the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) to connect India, the Middle East and Europe with railways, shipping lines, high-speed data cables and energy pipelines. In his four-hour-long meeting with Biden on Wednesday on the sidelines of t

98% of China's aid to Pak is in form of less-than-generous loans: Report

As much as 98 per cent of China's development funding for its all-weather ally Pakistan came in the form of less-than-generous loans, with only two per cent coming in the form of grants between 2000 and 2021, according to a research report. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a global infrastructure and investment initiative by Beijing, was launched in 2013. It is thought to be the largest partnership of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It increased to over USD 62 billion over time, and at least USD 25 billion was invested in cash-strapped Pakistan. Out of the total Chinese development finance portfolio of USD 70.3 billion, committed between 2000 and 2021 in Pakistan, eight per cent was official development assistance (grants and highly concessional loans) and 89 per cent was other official sector loans, said a report in The News International, quoting AidData, a US-based research lab. With USD 14.0 billion in finance commitments, 2017 was the top year for Pakistan;

US working with G7 nations to compete with China's Belt and Road Initiative

The US is working with other G7 members to compete with China's Belt and Road Initiative through a network of infrastructure projects, including a railroad connecting Saudi Arabia with Europe, President Joe Biden said. On the sidelines of the G20 Summit in September, key leaders of the world led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Biden had announced the launch of the ambitious India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor. "We are going to compete on that (Belt and Road Initiative) and we're doing it in a different way. The Belt and Road Initiative has ended up in debt and a noose for most of the people (nations) who have signed on," Biden said at a Rose Garden news conference with visiting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. He said that they are working with G7 partners to provide infrastructure for those nations. The Group of Seven (G7) comprises the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. "We want to, for example, at the G20, we were able to act

India reaffirms its stance against China's Belt and Road Initiative

According to Bagchi, India was not extended an invitation to this year's Belt and Road Forum by China. "I don't think we received an invitation this year," he said