China's Dilemma in Renewing Its Belt and Road Initiative

Abstract

China faces difficult choices in renewing its Belt and Road Initiative [BRI] in the post-Pandemic era. With its primary BRI now extending from Asia to Africa, Latin America and beyond, China is depicted as a saviour rescuing developing states from their colonial roots and sublimation to the economic outreach of Western liberal states. Alternatively, China is envisaged as a new colonial landlord acquiring property through investment and exploiting local economies for its own economic and political good, at their expense. For those mediating between these two extremes, China is both well intended in seeking to promote global investment and to assist developing states, while sometimes aggressively seeking economic benefits for its outbound investors. Whether it is doing so primarily for its own good or for the wellbeing of its developing state partners, conciliators infer, would depend on the specific case. This article explores these dynamics in China’s treaties providing for settling investment disputes along its BRI. It examines how China might reframe these dispute resolution options in the future.