During the congressional hearing, Representative Cory Mills grew visibly frustrated as he recounted how China “continues to promise railways like they did between Djibouti and other areas to try and link trade, they promise electrical terminal capabilities with hundred-year leases to try to create these reliances that has weakened America’s ability to be able to compete with them in the non-kinetic [non-military] influence capabilities,” to which Langley robotically admitted, “We know that we can’t keep up with the Belt and Road Initiative of billions of dollars in infrastructure.”
This brings a smile to my face. Based China improving the lives of people.
China is building the world we should have had. The world that could have been so much sooner. Had it not been for the Capitalists and their imperialist dogs.
Wow, who would have thought a country designed around one thing and one thing only, and that being one quarter of profits at a time, is incapable of competing with a country that's designed around the long-term sustainability of communism and the working class.
Tfw you specced into pure murdering black and brown people and then the meta shifts to helping black and brown people.
with hundred-year leases
This part is giving me pause. Is it true?
I'm still reading but it seems like he might be referring to Hambantota International Port. Per Wikipedia:
Construction of the port commenced in January 2008. In 2016, it reported an operating profit of $1.81 million but was considered economically unviable. As debt repayment got difficult, the newly-elected government decided to privatise an 80% stake of the port to raise foreign exchange in order to repay maturing sovereign bonds unrelated to the port. Of the two bidding companies, China Merchants Port was chosen, which was to pay $1.12 billion to Sri Lanka and spend additional amounts to develop the port into full operation.
That's a strange event. So the government privatised the port (which we all know goes swimmingly, just look at post-Soviet Russia), China swoops in with investments (which is normal), but then gets a century long lease. Why? What for? Do they get exclusive rights for using the port?
Just strange stuff all around
"Privatization" but the owning company is another country's state corporation - come to think of it, that also happened to British Rail, with big parts of the line being bought up by other European countries' state train companies.
This all happened pre-COVID too - most of the articles about the Belt and Road failing are about debts going bad directly as a result of COVID's trade slowdown, so whatever the heck is going on it appears to be to be a one off at the very least.
I never said BaR is failing. I am merely trying to parse the logic of action. And so far I am unable to
Sorry I didn't mean to imply you were, it's just that almost every article I fouund talking about this was covering it from the angle of "here's why the BAR initiative is collapsing (2023 edition)".
During the Algerian war of independence, a lot of colonized countries gained their independence, I think we're seeing something similar here with the Russian SMO and Palestine.
Well eff me, I legit thought they wouldn't. Taking my imaginary hat off to the brave people of Niger. Excellent stuff!
In awe at the bravery of Nigeriens, but also fearful knowing that the Yankee imperialists will not leave except at gunpoint. I don't want to see any blood shed, but I worry that the Americans will simply stay and justify violence as "self defence".
something similar happened in burkina faso a while ago and i found almost zero reliable info about what actually happened and the context for it in a language i can speak.
i will cautiously assume this is a positive thing because it seems to be an anti imperialistic movement?
thats what makes me not write this off as a bad thing honestly.
getting rid of their colonizers theoretically allows them to pick up the pieces and fix things, however the new leadership has to follow through with a good faith plan, and who even are they if i cant find more info to contextualize.
i say this because in the context of my own country, if you see the military coup our current system and promise the world: please send help.
Ibrahim Traoré is one of the most important leaders of the 21st century and should be an inspiration to any young person who wants to see major radical change and his or her people better than they are.
why don't they all just do that
