Sino-Indian Relations in the Time of B&RI

Three years after the plan for the Belt and Road Initiative (B&RI) was announced, China concluded the first Belt and Road Forum recently. While 130 countries participated, of which at least 68 are now part of the $900-billion infrastructure corridor project, India boycotted the event, making its concerns public hours before the forum commenced in Beijing.

India’s Reservations

India’s reservations are threefold

• The B&RI’s flagship project is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which includes projects in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, ignoring India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
• B&RI infrastructure smacks of Chinese neocolonialism, and could cause an unsustainable debt burden for communities with ....