Sri Lankan road construction laborers work along a road in Colombo on Aug. 5, 2018. – Sri Lanka’s central bank on Aug. 3 announced it had secured a $1 billion Chinese loan as the island, a key link in Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road initiative, develops closer relations with Asia’s largest economy. Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP via Getty Images
Commentary
In the early 2000s, China played a modest role as a global lender. But through its Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing began funding the building of bridges, ports, and railways in the Global South, calling it “win-win cooperation.”
