Vulnerable countries to pay record $22bn this year, mostly relating to loans issued under Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative
The most vulnerable nations on Earth are facing a “tidal wave” of debt repayments as a Chinese lending boom starts to be called in, a new report has warned.
The analysis, published on Tuesday by Australian foreign policy thinktank the Lowy Institute, said that in 2025 the poorest 75 countries were on the hook for record high debt repayments US$22bn to China. The 75 nations’ debt formed the bulk of the total $35bn calculated by Lowy for 2025.
“Now, and for the rest of this decade, China will be more debt collector than banker to the developing world,” the report said.
The pressure to repay was putting strain on local funding for health and education as well as climate change mitigation.
To the Neolibs:
Yep, this is bad, it is bad when the IMF/World Bank do it too.
To the tankies:
Yep, it is bad when the IMF/World Bank does this, it is also bad when China does it.
…
I have ‘very controversial’ views according to many people.
- China lends money for trade infrastructure
- Poor country defaults on bad terms
- China now owns your infrastructure
- China can now embargo you from within and starve your country. You are its puppet.
One belt. One road.
Can you please explain how the USA is permitted use of gitmo?
WTF does Gitmo have to do with this?
The lease that the US gained Gitmo from was technically with a government that no longer exists. The Cubans don’t have the resources to push the US out.
Funnily enough this would not apply to the Chinese if the countries they’re fucking with decide to push them out. The Chinese military is less experienced than a Somalian militia and doesn’t have a particularly good way of deploying troops, their navy is better than Russia but that means nothing.
That’s OK they will trade the debt for mineral rights and port control
If they’re smart they’ll all band together and default on that debt in unison.
This really isn’t different than the IMF, except I imagine China isn’t going to be leveraging their debt to convince poor countries to wage economic warfare against its poorest citizens and do massive giveaways to the foreign and domestic wealthy.
Fuck the IMF, all my homies hate the IMF.
Oh I’m suuuure China has no ulterior motives… good guys you know
Oh, they certainly do, but their ulterior motives aren’t “see if we can grind poor people into cash powder”, like the IMF’s is.
Don’t be naive. If it benefits China, they would be more than happy to grind people to “cash powder”.
Surely, but the difference is that China isn’t going in with the express intent of creating a debt trap to leverage poor countries to adopt austerity. They’re not saints, but it turns out that being 100x better than the IMF is a very low bar, like being more ethical than the CIA.
They are not better than the IMF or more ethical than the CIA. They are most likely far worse.
X
Why?
The American government (I think that’s what you are referencing when using the term CIA) has done a lot of very bad things. I don’t they’ve done anything as bad as the concentration camps and cultural genocide in Xinjiang (in the last ~100 years).
IMF can actually be flexible in some situations and there is measure of accountability. Chinese loans are managed by the CCP; an authoritarian criminal group.
Surely, but the difference is that China isn’t going in with the express intent of creating a debt trap to leverage poor countries to adopt austerity.
Why would China want to force a country to evolve their economy in any way? China is in it for the assets they get. A perfect example is the Hambantota port in Sri Lanka. China lent their money to Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka spent it unwisely and China accepted a 99 year lease on the newly built port as partial debt repayment. The lease agreement said “no military use” and 3 years ago China docked a military survey ship at that port.
So tell me which is worse: a few years of austerity, or a 99 year loss of your largest and newest port to a foreign nation ?
That doesn’t seem uniquely terrible to me, as an American. That’s just kind of what empires do, and I doubt I’d have to go very far to find a dozen examples of the US doing something quite similar. And it’s not a few years of austerity, the austerity causes long-term disturbances in the well being of the population, and is sometimes never undone. The IMF are some of the biggest bastards on the planet, you’d almost be better off dealing with the devil.
That doesn’t seem uniquely terrible to me, as an American. That’s just kind of what empires do, and I doubt I’d have to go very far to find a dozen examples of the US doing something quite similar.
Our discussion is between China lending and the IMF lending, not the USA.
And it’s not a few years of austerity, the austerity causes long-term disturbances in the well being of the population, and is sometimes never undone.
Long term disturbances like losing your port nation’s seaport to China for 99 years? Also with the distance possibility it will be a Chinese military base on your own soil without your consent?
Also you’re mixing to concepts as equal when they aren’t. IMF austerity is an imposed condition for getting a loan. A country considering an IMF loan can choose to not take IMF money and therefore not impose austerity. China is doing worse here where they’re allowing bad loans with no conditions, but write into the agreements that China gets national assets when the country defaults. As in, the country doesn’t have a choice to forgo the Chinese money and keep their assets that ship (pun intended) has already sailed.
The IMF are some of the biggest bastards on the planet, you’d almost be better off dealing with the devil.
I’m not defending the IMF’s actions. They’re no angels. However it seems you’re answering you’d prefer to deal with China and lose your countries land and national assets.
Do the Uyghurs not count?
They certainly do. China is straight up a police state, and what they’re doing to the Uyghurs is ghastly and draconian. I hate it and I think it’s really backwards, but there’s little evidence I’ve seen that actually meets the qualifications for genocide. Unlike what our best buddies in the whole wide world are doing in Gaza and the West Bank. What’s more is that it turns out we’re also a police state, and that the IMF promotes instability and oppression via austerity measures. So, pick your poison, I guess.
but there’s little evidence I’ve seen that actually meets the qualifications for genocide.
Lets start with: What is your definition of genocide?
So, that would be working towards the eradication of a people. There’s various ways to get there, forced sterilization (which we did with native Americans), outright slaughter or famine (which we did with native Americans), forced removal campaigns (spoiler alert), and, of course, the eradication of cultural identity (like the boarding schools for native Americans).
AFAICT, the evidence for what’s happening in Xinjiang is mostly around re-education camps, which could arguably qualify on the fourth criterion, but we don’t really have any reliable details on it because authoritarian governments generally don’t share their secret squirrel bullshit publicly. Also, people get sent to prison hella easy and locals generally aren’t free to walk around unaccompanied. That’s all batshit insane police state shit that Trump would implement today if he thought he could get away with it, but it’s not Genocide. To my understanding, there is no evidence to support the idea that Uyghurs are being slaughtered in masse or that there is any kind of effort to depopulate them. And there’s certainly nothing like we’re seeing in Gaza, I seriously doubt even China could hide something like that.
So, that would be working towards the eradication of a people. There’s various ways to get there, forced sterilization (which we did with native Americans), outright slaughter or famine (which we did with native Americans), forced removal campaigns (spoiler alert), and, of course, the eradication of cultural identity (like the boarding schools for native Americans).
I’m glad to see we agree on the definition of genocide to include intentional destruction of the culture.
AFAICT, the evidence for what’s happening in Xinjiang is mostly around re-education camps, which could arguably qualify on the fourth criterion, but we don’t really have any reliable details on it because authoritarian governments generally don’t share their secret squirrel bullshit publicly.
I’m not sure you’ve looked very hard at the “destruction of culture” aspects China is imposing. Here’s an article from CNN from 6 years ago:
“Chinese Uyghurs forced to welcome Communist Party into their homes: Government statements and state media reports show that families are required to provide detailed information during the visits on their personal lives and political views. They are also subject to “political education” from the live-in officials– whose stays are mandated to be at least one week per month in some locations.”
"In numerous photos posted online, the authorities paint a picture of ethnic unity, showing smiling Han officials and minority families jointly preparing meals, doing household chores, playing sports and even sharing the same bed – images that Human Rights Watch’s Wang says put the “forced intimacy” element of the program on full display. "
“A local government statement online also indicated that officials must inspect the homes they are staying for any religious elements or logos – and instructed the officials to confiscate any such items found in the house.”
““The real intention of the Chinese government is to eliminate the Uyghurs as a distinct ethnic group,” Rebiya Kadeer, a longtime exiled Uyghur leader who recently stepped down as president of the advocacy group World Uyghur Congress, told CNN in an interview in Washington last year.”
You agree that both have ulterior motive right?
Well I certainly know for whom the Chinese aim to benefit.
IMF crying because its getting outcompeted lol
Huh, i thought they were AGAINST neo-colonialism. Guess not.
“China” has been colonialist for ~3000 years. The entire region has been a series of colonial projects since the dawn of civilisation. I can’t even think of a period when they weren’t colonialist.
Edit: I don’t mean to single out China here – my point is that nearly everyone is colonialist and has been for a very long time, so any state saying they are not colonialist is most likely lying.
We’re just killing each other with mostly money instead of other weapons. End result is the same.
I can’t wait for our Indian overlords to do the same soon. We can’t get enough money.
But but but, the talkies here told me that China was awesot and that they’d never do something like this!
Could it be they were lying?
I see two comments like this, but I’m out of the loop so I’m gonna ask… What’s 75? Edit: a link is an acceptable response, I’m happy to read 😅
It’s 75 nations, not 750.
Ah, post most have been updated before I saw the mistake. I was hoping it might be a fun new code to keep an eye out for. Thanks!
It still says 750 in the text and in the URL. Looks like guardian made the mistake first.
Normally I’d say I should have read the article, but in this case it seems it was wise to stick with the summary! 😂
Well, it’s not 750.
Indeed, your one has a zero on the end.
75