Overseas Infrastructure Investments.

China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) presents another area

of concern. The BRI represents one of Xi’s boldest initiatives for boosting China’s global position.
It is ostensibly a massive project of investing in infrastructure projects—such as ports, roads and
bridges—in other countries as a way of resurrecting the old Silk Road trading routes. In practice,
it is a grand strategy for China to increase its geopolitical influence in every world region. One
tracker places Chinese investments in, and contracts for, BRI projects at more than $750 billion.16
More than sixty countries have signed on to, or expressed interest in, BRI projects.
While infrastructure investments are badly needed in many recipient countries, the investments
do not meet global standards for transparency, and the deals sometimes disadvantage recipient
countries.18 BRI projects involve unclear bidding processes and financial arrangements kept
hidden from the public. This prompts legitimate questions about corruption and accountability
among citizens of recipient countries.19 One Chinese company has been accused of bribery in
the Philippines, Malaysia, and elsewhere, while in Sri Lanka, the prime minister’s family was
allegedly bribed by Chinese companies.20 Projects usually employ Chinese, rather than local,
workers, further upsetting residents of recipient nations. In some cases, China has secured its
investments with commodities, raising accusations of neo-colonialism.
China’s BRI program has also sometimes resulted in debt traps for recipient countries, even if that
was not the original intent. For example, when Sri Lanka fell behind on payments for a Chinese-
built port, the CCP took control of the port and surrounding territory. Chinese military vessels
have visited this port, raising fears that China could use the port to expand its military’s reach in
the key connective zone of the Indian Ocean. China’s financial influence in Africa is especially
pronounced. Through December 2019, Chinese investment in BRI infrastructure projects in Africa
totaled more than $140 billion. Approximately 20 percent of all African government debt—
including, but not limited to, BRI projects—is owed to China.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, many African countries have expressed concern about their ability
to pay off interest on debts while addressing the crisis. While China has shown a willingness to
offer some relief, the CCP faces a dilemma: restructure or forgive debt and stress China’s own
debt-burdened economy, or demand payments and hurt China’s global image.China recognizes
the importance of trade and investment as diplomatic tools. Between 2005 and 2019, China's
outgoing foreign direct investment (FDI) totaled around $1.23 trillion.25 For the Chinese, trade
and investment are not viewed only as economic opportunities, but also a way to increase
political and diplomatic influence abroad.It is unsurprising, then, that Chinese investment tends
to focus on areas of strategic interest. Its trading partners view relations with China as an integral
and unavoidable piece of their international position.
Utilizing BRI and other investment programs, China has managed to strengthen relationships with
nations with historically close ties to the United States, such as Italy and Greece. China also exerts
influence over NATO allies and other Eastern European nations in the 17+1 program. The 17+1
group, also known as the China Central and Eastern European Countries (China-CEEC), includes
twelve EU member states, six Balkan nations, and fifteen NATO members—roughly half the
Alliance. Since 2012, China has contributed more than $15 billion to infrastructure and other
projects in member nations. BRI is helping the CCP to increase its influence overseas, but the
CCP’s heavy-handed practices are also beginning to provoke a backlash. Coercive foreign aid, debt
traps, and a lack of transparency are feeding anti-Chinese sentiment abroad, including recently in
places such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, where China has invested heavily in infrastructure
projects.Many locals view China’s behavior as predatory and corrupt.29 Some BRI recipients have
canceled or reduced the scope of projects over cost concerns. In 2018, for example, Myanmar
scaled back a port-building project from an estimated $7 billion to just more than $1 billion, and
Sierra Leone outright canceled a project to build a new airport.30 Similarly, in 2019,
Malaysia’s government permitted a BRI project to continue after renegotiating a significantly
reduced price tag.