Remember how European powers (and Japan but mostly European) held onto overseas possessions after the age of colonialism, whether they be small islands, little masses of land that are leased, or military bases? Well, China is here to join the race. Recently, they installed a military base in Djibouti, a country in Africa and also technically the Middle East. And now they also own/lease a port and small mass of land in Sri Lanka. It's crazy.
So how does a country like China own a part of another country? Let's look at Sri Lanka. The government is heavily corrupted, and with the push to create new infrastructure like a new airport, they needed to borrow money. No one was willing to lend them money except China. The airport, the Mattala Rajpaksa International Airport, was a total bust. It's referred to as the loneliest airport in the world. The ports near it were also built with Chinese loans, and after months of negotiation, China owns about 70% of the land there for a 99-year lease. It won't be long before more territories become gobbled up and China starts to ask for its money back from the African countries it lent money to.
To think that China is now claiming more and more cities and regions around the world and also building up bases halfway across the world? What's next? Are they going to start colonizing? Africa is a hotbed for foreign investment so it's not a surprise that China might start racking up more "leased territory".
https://www.news18.com/news/india/the-worlds-loneliest-airport-has-india-sri-lanka-in-a-tough-spot-1828307.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/world/asia/china-sri-lanka-port.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/12/world/asia/sri-lanka-china-port.html
https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/a22472/china-overseas-military-base/
Comments
Post a Comment