Sounds like a trade to me. Predatory tho if the country is very poor and easily exploited. But as someone from a country that loves to invade others for resources I’d take predatory trading over military force any day.

You didn't dive deep enough into the literal eco/social catastrophe that the silkroad is.

It isn't military because neither of those two countries have any sort of way to defend themselves against China, but it might as well be military, because China.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_and_Road_Initiative

That's a whole lot better than the deal from the US, frankly.

> It won't cause conflict because China will just come in and take it...

vs

> "Here, take a 'free' hydrodam on your river and we will just take some land and electricity."

So which is it? They will 'take it' or they will trade for it?

That's the problem with anti-chinese propaganda. It makes no sense and is full of contradictions.

What they take has been proven to be far greater value than what they gave. It isn't a fair "trade", at all.

To be fair to China, corrupt locals allowed it to happen.

> What they take has been proven to be far greater value than what they gave. It isn't a fair "trade", at all.

Sure it is. As long as it wasn't coerced.

> To be fair to China, corrupt locals allowed it to happen.

I have a feeling that any trade with china or anything that helps poor countries progress is 'corrupt' to you. But then again, you push so much ant-china shilling, I recognize you just from your username.

If china is taking so much for so little, why isn't europe or the US swooping in and offering a better deal? Perhpas because china is giving them the best deal?

> As long as it wasn't coerced.

By definition, it was coerced.