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China preps for Xi Jinping's Belt and Road gala. Chief guest? Vladimir Putin
Beijing said that it had now inked over two trillion dollars in contracts around the world.
China announced that it will host a gathering of foreign leaders next week to celebrate a decade of its Belt and Road infrastructure project. Russian president Vladimir Putin is expected to attend the event which marks 10 years of the Belt and Road project- China president Xi Jinping's bid to expand China's clout overseas- as Beijing said that it had now inked over two trillion dollars in contracts around the world.
"We welcome countries and partners actively participating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to come to Beijing to discuss cooperation plans and seek common development," China foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning earlier said.
While China has been accused of attracting lower-income countries into debt traps by offering huge, unaffordable loans through the initiative, representatives from over 130 countries are due to take part in the event where Xi Jinping is set to deliver an opening speech. He will also hold a welcoming banquet for foreign leaders. This will be the third forum of its kind since China launched the vast initiative, as events were previously held in 2017 and 2019.
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Vladimir Putin to attend
Russian president Vladimir Putin has said he will attend the event- marking his first visit to China since Moscow's war in Ukraine. Top Russian diplomat Sergei Lavrov will also attend and hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Moscow informed.
What has Beijing said on Belt and Road initiative
Beijing hailed the initiative as having “delivered real gains to participating countries” saying that the balance of loans for the projects from the Export-Import Bank of China (Eximbank) now totalled 2.2 trillion yuan ($307.4 billion). Eximbank has financed major transport and energy projects across the projects.
Italy opting out of Belt and Road initiative
Italy- one of the group's leading developed democracies to sign up to the investment scheme- said last month that it was considering opting out of the deal.
