The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) released a report highlighting China’s significant global port presence and its economic influence through the Belt and Road Initiative.
Despite not being a major naval power, China has a dominant port network.
The report suggests that China’s port infrastructure could potentially be repurposed for military use.
“Chinese President Xi Jinping’s launch of the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013 and the introduction of the Twenty-First Century Maritime Silk Road, which connects China to Europe and the Arctic Ocean via the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean, have supercharged China’s overseas port investment and construction activities,” explained the report. (Trending: Supreme Court Dismisses Case To Keep Trump Off Ballot)
The report also claimed that China accomplished “significant geoeconomic influence over international sea-lanes and commercial ports underpinning the global flow of goods”, without relying on many naval stations beyond their borders.
“China’s leverage is in its varied degrees of investment and ownership in the world’s busiest and most-connected ports, which underpin the global flow of goods,” warned the CFR.
The United States and India are taking steps to counter China’s port dominance, with the US funding a port terminal in Sri Lanka.
Chief Executive Scott Nathan of The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) said, “It is a high priority for the U.S. to be active in the Indo-Pacific region.” (Trending: Donald Trump Gets Great News)
Adding, “It is obviously the engine of economic growth for the world.”
Nathan explained that DFC is offering loans to help Sri Lanka “expand its shipping capacity, creating greater prosperity” while not adding to the country’s national debt.
The move aims to enhance regional economic integration and prevent countries from falling into debt traps due to Chinese loans.
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