Xi Jinping’s Grand Belt and Road Project is a sinister calculation. Taking advantage of corrupt governments to trap these countries in a debt trap. Among the countries that have been lured by Xi to participate in this project, there is Italy – a power in the G7 bloc.
For rich countries, it is difficult for Xi to set a debt trap, because in these places, corruption is low and transparency is highly promoted. However, in July, when responding to Corriere della Sera newspaper, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said that joining China’s Belt and Road initiative was an “unprepared and wrong decision. It is not does much to boost Italian exports to China while helping to increase exports from China to Italy.”
For a G7 power that is also stuck with problems in Xi’s Belt and Road project, how can poor countries be wise enough to recognize this problem? For example, in Sri Lanka, when China blocked its seaport for 99 years, they realized they were trapped.
The Communist Party of Vietnam is certainly not wise enough to see the traps in Xi’s project. But even if they did see it, they wouldn’t care much. They only care about personal benefits when the Belt and Road project is implemented in Vietnam. At that time, the officials benefited, their houses were filled with money, and the losses were left to the country for ordinary people.
The fact that the Communist Party of Vietnam hesitates to participate in this great project is not because they are wise, but in fact, they are just testing people’s reactions. When they feel capable of suppressing all opposition, they will do so, but it is difficult for them to separate from the orbit of Communist China. Participating in the great Belt and Road project is a great opportunity to make money, so no official refuses.
Up to now, the Communist Party of Vietnam is still leaving open the possibility of participating in this project. By regularly sending the President to participate in the high-level “Belt and Road” Forum, it shows that the Communist Party really wants to participate, but unfortunately, the people refuse. Vietnamese people react very strongly to issues related to China, which is what the Communist Party of Vietnam is concerned about, but they are not at all concerned about whether this project will be beneficial or harmful to the country. As long as it is beneficial for the Party and beneficial for officials, they will do it.
After Mr. Vo Van Thuong returned from participating in the high-level “Belt and Road” Forum, the Chinese side spoke up and wanted to receive the contract for the North-South high-speed railway project. However, letting a Chinese contractor jump into a large project is a problem, because it must be done to quell people’s opposition.
On October 30, Cafebiz newspaper published an article titled “A great power rejected Japan three times, ignored US requests, spent $480 billion inviting Chinese firms to build its national projects.” The content mentioned that Britain had to rely on Chinese infrastructure construction technology.
However, this article takes information from Baidu and Global Times – newspapers that are servants of the Chinese Communist Party – so it is not trustworthy. If sources are from major British newspapers, the reliability is higher.
Assuming the UK invites Chinese contractors to build a high-speed railway, the UK can still force the Chinese contractor to perform on schedule and ensure quality. Because British management has long been transparent and avoids corruption, it is not easy for them to fall into the trap. Furthermore, when Chinese contractors carry out projects in rich countries, they are forced to do better, compared to when carrying out projects in poor countries. The quality of Chinese products is not consistent, it depends on the market.
In fact, this article was posted to gauge people’s reactions, as well as to clear the way for Chinese contractors to jump into Vietnam’s big projects. The North-South high-speed railway project is up to $60 billion, a very large amount of money. This is an opportunity for Communist officials to get rich, so they will find ways to invite China in, regardless of the debt China left behind in Cat Linh – Ha Dong.
Thoibao.de (Translated)
