Expert Seminar Addressing China’s Belt and Road Strategy: Perspectives from the United States, Japan, and Southeast Asia

The Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) Japan-US Program sponsored an expert seminar on October 25, 2018, to present the report “Power Play: Addressing China’s Belt and Road Strategy,” a joint project between SPF and the Center for a New American Security (CNAS). The event, which showcased new research into the impact of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Asia and beyond, featured presentations by CNAS Research Associate Abigail Grace, one of the authors of the report, and Dr. Kei Koga, Assistant Professor at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

The Belt and Road, China’s multibillion dollar proposal to link Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe through massive investments in physical and digital infrastructure, has become a closely watched aspect of China’s foreign policy. Between 2014 and 2017, Chinese investment in BRI development projects reached $340 billion according to independent estimates and 92 countries have formally endorsed the initiative. However, on the heels of stalled projects and other incidents, including a forced debt for equity swap in Sri Lanka that allowed China to seize control of a strategically-located port on a 99-year lease, many host countries have begun to reassess BRI investments.

Read the full article and more on the Sasakawa Peace Foundation website.