Remodeling the Belt and Road: Pakistan Picks Up the Torch

by James M. Dorsey Pakistan, following in the footsteps of Malaysia and Myanmar, is the latest country to balk at the China and infrastructure focus of Beijing’s Belt and Road-related investments. Preparing for his first visit to China as Pakistan’s prime… Continue Reading

China Struggles with Belt and Road Pushback

by James M. Dorsey China, in an implicit recognition that at least some of its Belt and Road-related projects risk trapping target countries in debt or fail to meet their needs, has conceded that adjustments may be necessary. “It’s normal… Continue Reading

Commercial terms call into question China’s win-win Belt and Road initiative

by James M. Dorsey In a rare challenging of Chinese commercial terms that underlie the country’s ambitious Belt and Road initiative, Pakistan and Nepal have withdrawn from two dam-building deals. The withdrawal coincides with mounting questions in Pakistan, a crown… Continue Reading

Where Hope Becomes Desperation

by Henry Precht Katmandu, Baltimore, the Mediterranean Sea, Yemen, Syria—it has been a grim week of news from around the globe. If we looked a bit further back for the same kind of dark headlines, we could add the migration of… Continue Reading