Beijing is pledging to extend new funding of $60 billion to Africa, aimed at areas from industrial enhancement to infrastructure. China also says it will wipe clean the debt for certain African countries when interest-free loans come due later this year.
President Xi Jinping made the pledge Monday during the opening ceremony of the triennial Forum on China Africa Cooperation in Beijing.
He did not say which countries would have their debt absolved, but the move appeared to be the latest effort by Beijing to deflect concerns about debt levels on the continent and the risks of “debt trap diplomacy.”
Speaking to leaders from more than 30 African countries at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Xi said China’s investment and engagement on the continent would continue, with no political strings attached to Beijing’s investments in Africa.
According to data from John Hopkins University’s China Africa Research Initiative, China has already loaned around $125 billion to the continent between 2000 and 2016. That has led to high debt risks in countries like Djibouti — where China recently opened its first overseas military base — and Zambia.
China has denied it is engaged in debt trap diplomacy and Chinese state media have argued that concerns raised in Western media and by politicians are nothing but sour grapes.
北京承诺再向非洲提供600亿美元援助，用于从加强工业发展到基础设施建设。中国还表示，某些非洲国家的无息贷款今年晚些时候到期时，将免除这些国家的债务。
中国国家主席习近平周一在北京举行的中非合作论坛开幕式上作出这一承诺。
习近平没有指明哪些国家的债务会被免除。此举似乎是北京方面为转移人们对非洲大陆债务的担忧以及“债务陷阱外交”风险的最新努力。
习近平在北京人民大会堂向来自30多个非洲国家的领导人发表讲话说，中国在非洲大陆的投资和参与将继续下去，北京对非洲的投资没有任何政治条件。
美国约翰霍普金斯大学中国非洲研究项目的数据显示，中国在2000年至2016年期间向非洲大陆贷款约1250亿美元。这导致一些国家，像吉布提和赞比亚的债务风险很高。中国最近在吉布提开设了第一个海外军事基地。
中国否认正在进行债务陷阱外交。中国官方媒体说，西方媒体和政客们提出的担忧只不过是处于酸葡萄心理。