With the ‘Dual Circulation Strategy’ (DCS), the government in Beijing has once again thrown a stone into the water to test the effects of the announcement. However, after a few critical articles, the international discussion has remained surprisingly quiet. Yet the deliberations could have far-reaching implications for further globalization and China’s leading role in it.
Tag Archives: Resources
Newsletter 6/October 2021
CONTENTS: Posts: Coal Phase-out top down / Kohleausstieg ‘par ordre de mufti’ // News: ASEAN’s emergent key role / China and Europe: Cooperation in Africa / „Global Gateway“ – Europe’s connectivity competition / Update: Compensation for “no more coal-fired plants abroad” // Readings: How ‘multilateral’ is the AIIB? / Global Perspectives on China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Coal phase-out ‘par ordre de mufti’
President Xi Jinping’s announcement at the UN General Assembly in September that China will not build any new coal-fired power plants abroad in the future has given the international climate community new hope for an accelerated reduction of CO2 emissions worldwide, like the mirage of an oasis to the thirsty wanderers in the Sahara. For a real energy transition in the countries of the Global South, however, this is only one – albeit important – piece of the puzzle.
“No new coal power abroad”
Advocates have been doing everything they can for years to stop the construction of new coal power plants. Xi Jinping’s announcement could bring an end to China’s position as the world’s largest and last major public financial backer and builder of coal fired power plants overseas.
Newsletter 3/July 2021
CONTENTS: Posts: Options for Beijing in Afghanistan: ‚From free rider to engine driver?’ / Guest post by Ying Wang on Chinese NGOs ‚Going global’ / Blog roll: The People’s Map of Global China / Workers Struggles along the New Silk Roads (in German) / News: Who Funds Overseas Coal Plants // Readings: The Impact of the Belt and Road Initiative on Conflict States.
Pakistan: Fraternal controversy
„China and Pakistan fall out over Belt and Road frameworks,” trumpeted the Japanese business publication Nikkei Asia on January 19. There is no secret about the exasperation, even alarm, regarding what President Xi Jinping once called “brotherly” Sino-Pakistani cooperation in general and the China Pakistan Economic Corridor project in particular. This probably raised some hopeful expectations in New Delhi.
The Role of the State in China’s Belt and Road Initiative
It is not unusual that in huge infrastructure projects the state plays a crucial role in framing and implementation, often in varying forms of cooperation with private companies. Because of its distinctive regime character and relation with Chinese enterprises, the role that the Chinese state plays in the implementation of the ambitious infrastructure initiative BRI seems to be clearly different from similar initiatives.