Maritime Silk Road: China's Rising Influence in the East via Economic Diplomacy
Abstract
The Chinese government has put its weight behind building a geo-economic maritime route across the Indo-Pacific region under the banner of its Belt and Road (BRI) initiative. China, through the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" initiative is proposing to build ports in underdeveloped countries by granting them massive loans and so far, commercial ports have been the recipient of majority of Chinese investment funding. Many circumstances drive China's push to acquire transportation hubs. First, the rate of economic growth slowed down in mainland China relative to the boom years of the 2000s that produced a need to find other markets for domestically-produced goods while the construction industry threatened to overheat domestic property values. Second, secure ports and other transportation infrastructure ensure that China has access to goods and services coming and going. Absent this critical infrastructure, China's ability to state its extended territorial claims in the South China Sea would be much weaker. Should conflict escalate, China could be blockaded by its neighbors. Lastly, creating a relationship where the sovereign nation is in debt to China, gives China a political foothold in that nation, forcing an alliance based on Chinese economic influence or coercion.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 26, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1178151
Entities
People
- Trivendhiran Pillai
Organizations
- Marine Corps University