The Belt and Road to nowhere: China's incoherent aid in Papua New Guinea

Graeme Smith, The Interpreter; original article contains links.

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Excerpt:

In the BRI [Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative], Chinese aid, trade, and investment come under the umbrella of one grand strategy that includes the Pacific. ... what could be the most far-reaching change to Chinese diplomacy in decades. According to [a] Bloomberg report, ambassadors will be given a veto over finances and personnel.

In China, the status of an agency is determined by whether or not it controls the “three powers” (san quan) of personnel, finance, and materials. This change would represent a boost to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), a department that has long been the weakest link in China’s public diplomacy, muscled out by the Ministry of Commerce, state-owned enterprises and Party organisations such as the United Front Work Department. ...

Before we proclaim a new era in Chinese diplomacy, however, it’s best to wait until after the National People’s Congress meets in March. Rumours abound that former anti-corruption tsar Wang Qishan will be made vice president and overhaul China’s soft power efforts.

We’ll need more than a Bloomberg piece citing one on-the-record source before declaring China’s diplomacy transformed. Everyone may agree that China needs to fix its diplomacy, but how will cashed-up agents of the Party and highly ranked ministries cede power to the lowly MFA? Even Vice President Wang may struggle to see that through.