China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” in Sri Lanka : Debt Diplomacy in Hambantota Port Investment

Penulis

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33822/mjihi.v2i2.1482

Kata Kunci:

belt road initiative, debt diplomacy, soft power, China, Sri Lanka.

Abstrak

This article will discuss the impact of China's debt diplomacy in Sri Lanka through the Belt Road Initiative (BRI) which has an impact on China's control of the Hambantota Port for 99 years. The Belt and Road Initiative with the promotion of infrastructure investment is an example of the use of Chinese soft power diplomacy on a global level. In the Hambantota Port development project, Sri Lanka relied on development funding from China and subsequently defaulted. At first the Sri Lankan Government under the leadership of Mahinda Rajapaksa opened the investment door for China. From 2010 to 2015, China provided a $ 4.8 billion loan to build various infrastructure projects including the Hambantota Port, new airports, power plants and highways. Sri Lanka was then caught up in debt diplomacy carried out by China. Then, this article also discusses the response and efforts of the Sri Lankan government to renegotiate the ownership of Chinese shares in the Hambantota Port project. The Sri Lankan government is working hard to get out of the debt diplomacy trap. This article also then discusses the strategic economic and political impacts of controlling the Hambantota Port by China. This article uses books, research reports, theses, journals, newspapers, and online news as reference material.

 

Biografi Penulis

Adhe Nuansa Wibisono, Turkish National Police Academy, Ankara

Ph.D Student of Turkish National Police Academy, Ankara

Referensi

Arangalla, Chandana Priyantha, “Nonalignment to Balance China’s Influence on Sri Lanka : Negotiating China’s ‘String Of Pearls’ Strategy for the Pearl of the Indian Ocean”, Thesis, (California : Naval Postgraduate School, December 2017), Accessed on 27 November 2018, https://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/56751

Gunasekara, Shiyana, “Sri Lanka Suffers from China’s Indian Ocean Strategy”, Asia Pacific Bulletin No. 372 – 21 February 2017, (Washington : East West Center, February 2017), Accessed on 27 November 2018, https://www.eastwestcenter.org/publications/sri-lanka-suffers-china%E2%80%99s-indian-ocean-strategy

Hurley, John, Scott Morris, and Gailyn Portelance, “Examining the Debt Implications of the Belt and Road Initiative from a Policy Perspective”, CGD Policy Paper, No. 121, March 2018, (Washington : Center for Global Development, March 2018), Accessed on 27 November 2018, https://www.cgdev.org/publication/examining-debt-implications-belt-and-road-initiative-a-policy-perspective

Parker, Sam, and Gabrielle Chefitz, “Debtbook Diplomacy : China’s Strategic Leveraging of its Newfound Economic Influence and the Consequences for U.S. Foreign Policy”, (Massachusetts : Harvard Kennedy School, May 2018), Accessed on 21 December 2018, https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/files/publication/Debtbook%20Diplomacy%20PDF.pdf

Patrick, Anjelina, “China - Sri Lanka Strategic Hambantota Port Deal”, National Maritime Foundation, 13 April 2017, (New Delhi : National Maritime Foundation, April 2017), Accessed on 27 November 2018, http://www.maritimeindia.org/View%20Profile/636276610966827339.pdf

Tonchev, Plamen, “Along the Road Sri Lanka’s Tale of Two Ports”, Brief Issue, No. 4, 2018, (Paris : European Union Institute for Security Studies, April 2018), Accessed on 27 November 2018, https://www.iss.europa.eu/content/along-road-%E2%80%93-sri-lanka%E2%80%99s-tale-two-ports

Var, Veasna, and Sovinda Po, “Cambodia, Sri Lanka and the China Debt Trap”, East Asia Forum, 18 March 2017, Accessed on 27 November 2018, http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2017/03/18/cambodia-sri-lanka-and-the-china-debt-trap/

Yağci, Mustafa, “Rethinking Soft Power in Light of China’s Belt and Road Initiative”, Uluslararası İlişkiler, Volume 15, No. 57, 2018 (Istanbul : Uluslararası İlişkiler Konseyi İktisadi İşletmesi, 2018), Accessed on 21 December 2018, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/324798099_Rethinking_Soft_Power_in_Light_of_China's_Belt_and_Road_Initiative

News

BBC News, “Sri Lanka : A Country Trapped in Debt”, 26 May 2017, https://www.bbc.com/news/business-40044113, accessed on 27 November 2018

CNBC News, “Constitutional Crisis Could Destabilize Sri Lanka, Pushing it Closer to China”, 30 October 2018, https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/30/sri-lanka-crisis-political-economic-finanncial-conseuqences.html, accessed on 28 Desember 2018

Center for Strategic and International Studies, “Game of Loans: How China Bought Hambantota”, 2 April 2018, https://www.csis.org/analysis/game-loans-how-china-bought-hambantota, accessed on 27 November 2018

Foreign Policy, “Sri Lanka’s Political Shake-Up Is a Win for China”, 29 October 2018,https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/10/29/sri-lankas-political-shake-up-is-a-win-for-china/, accessed on 28 December 2018

Nikkei Asian Review, “Sri Lanka Sinks Deeper into China’s Grasp as Debt Woes Spiral”, 29 August 2018, https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Belt-and-Road/Sri-Lanka-sinks-deeper-into-China-s-grasp-as-debt-woes-spiral, accessed on 27 November 2018

The Economic Times, “New Chinese Loan May Further Plunge Sri Lanka Into Debt Trap”, 3 September 2018, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/new-chinese-loan-may-further-plunge-sri-lanka-into-debt-trap/articleshow/65659719.cms, accessed on 27 November 2018

The Forbes, “China Could Spoil Sri Lanka’s Chance to Become a Breakout Nation Again”, 20 September 2018, https://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/2018/09/20/china-could-spoil-sri-lankas-chance-to-become-a-break-out-nation-again/#7ff90b0d5889, accessed on 27 November 2018

The National, “Sri Lanka Hands Over Port to China to Pay Off Debt”, 14 December 2017, https://www.thenational.ae/world/asia/sri-lanka-hands-over-port-to-china-to-pay-off-debt-1.684606, accessed on 27 November 2018

The New York Times, “How China Got Sri Lanka to Cough Up a Port”, 25 June 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/world/asia/china-sri-lanka-port.html, accessed on 27 November 2018

The Quartz, “China’s ‘Debt Trap’ is Even Worse than We Thought”, 28 June 2018, https://qz.com/1317234/chinas-debt-trap-in-sri-lanka-is-even-worse-than-we-thought/

Diterbitkan

2019-07-01

Cara Mengutip

Wibisono, A. N. (2019). China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” in Sri Lanka : Debt Diplomacy in Hambantota Port Investment. Mandala: Jurnal Ilmu Hubungan Internasional, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.33822/mjihi.v2i2.1482