The Editorial Board of the Wall Street Journal has a great article today on the consequences of Pakistan taking money from the Chinese. "That debt has ballooned as Islamabad borrowed from Chinese banks to finance the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, a $62 billion scheme to build transport and energy projects. The program is a showcase for China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a push to build infrastructure in Asia, Europe and Africa." So, the leadership has to deal with a financial crisis of its predecessor's doing.
As I said in the Chinese Information War, the Chinese work a little more like the Mafia than a benevolent country. It's the old "make them an offer they can't refuse" approach, except that unlike the IMF or the US the money is actually supposed to be repaid at usury rates. What the US is doing now is saying to the IMF, we should not be allowing the IMF to give money to countries paying these kinds of rates to Chinese investors when they borrow to pay up. When they can't pay, the Chinese are more than glad to accept something of value - like a port facility- as payment. The debts never get less at these rates, and eventually they own the store. This is extortion, in case you forgot.
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