The man widely expected to become China’s next leader was expected to boost his country’s fast-growing ties with Laos during a visit yesterday, as Beijing competes with Vietnam for influence in the small but resource-rich nation, observers say.
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (習近平) will meet his Laotian counterpart during the “very important” one-day stop, Lao government spokesman Khenthong Nuanthasing said.
China, along with Vietnam and Thailand, is among the top investors in Laos, and trade links are “growing very fast,” said Somneuk Davadingm, the World Bank country economist for Laos.
Trade between the two countries reached about US$500 million in value last year, he said. Imports are expected to continue growing while mineral, agricultural and wood exports from Laos will also rise, Somneuk said.
Ian Storey, a fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in Singapore, said it would not be a surprise if several major deals were announced during the visit by Xi, the heir apparent to Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤).
China is particularly keen on investing in rubber plantations to supply its automotive industry, and in hydroelectricity, Storey said.
It has also devoted a lot of money to upgrading Laos’s transport network to help Chinese goods reach Thailand, he said.
In April, a source said China had signed an agreement to cooperate on developing a railway for Laos, which is a member of ASEAN.
ASEAN leaders want to strengthen the region’s transportation and other links to improve competitiveness.
A free-trade agreement that took effect this year between China and ASEAN is the world’s biggest by population, covering a market of 1.7 billion consumers.
Khenthong said he “expected something” related to investments to be signed during Xi’s visit, but said he had no details.
The Chinese business presence in Laos is already very clear, from small restaurants to major projects such as the Sepon copper and gold mine, controlled by China Minmetals Corp, said a foreign diplomat who declined to be named.
A corresponding influx of Chinese nationals “has become very controversial” in the country of about 7 million, Storey said.
Concerns have been raised that foreign-invested megaprojects in Laos rely too heavily on foreign labor.
Along with its economic power, China’s political influence is increasing through ties with a relatively younger generation of Laotian leaders as it seeks to ensure access to resources and maintain stability on its borders, Storey said.
The older generation was more closely tied to Vietnam, even through family bonds, he said.
“The sort of unstated goal from China’s perspective is, it seeks to displace Vietnam,” Storey said, while Hanoi “has pulled out all the stops to try to maintain influence.”
Vietnam’s official news agency carries frequent reports about the “special solidarity” with Laos.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was