One Belt and Road Initiative growing stronger
Pakistan’s top court directs central bank to issue funds for snap pollsThe parliament had on Thursday (13) ruled it wasn’t possible to spare Rs 21 billion ($74.79 million) in funds for the snap polls, which the court had ordered.
Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial had summoned officials from the finance ministry, the central bank and the Election Commision of Pakistan (ECP) to his chamber on Friday to seek a reply on the funds, warning that non-compliance would have consequences.
The parliament had on Thursday (13) ruled it wasn’t possible to spare Rs 21 billion ($74.79 million) in funds for the snap polls, which the court had ordered.
The court order said the chief justice directed the central bank’s acting governor and the finance ministry to coordinate and “forthwith allocate and release” the money from federal consolidated funds no later than April 17.
China spent £194.97 billion rescuing ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ nations, says study
Argentina was the largest beneficiary, receiving £90.80bn, equivalent to $111.8bn, followed by Pakistan with £39.39 ($48.5bn) and Egypt with £12.67 ($15.6bn)
Countries have received bailouts to extend loans and remain solvent. China claims over 150 countries have joined the trillion-dollar BRI infrastructure initiative launched by President Xi Jinping ten years ago.
According to Beijing, the objective of the initiative is to strengthen friendly trade ties with other countries, especially those in the developing world.
Japan, India, France to announce launch of Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring negotiation process
Sri Lanka confident of Chinese support in debt restructuring: central bank chief
The central bank chief of the crisis-hit South Asian country said Sri Lanka is optimistic of China’s continued support, pointing to how Beijing “did the right thing in giving Sri Lanka financing assurances last time”.
“I think this is probably the first time China has given it that fast,” he said.
With the help of the International Monetary Fund and other partners who also helped share information, said Weerasinghe, the debt restructuring process can continue.
“Obviously China is a country that has been helping Sri Lanka for a long time and [it has[ invested a lot [in Sri Lanka]. [It will be in the] best interest of both China and Sri Lanka to complete this process soon and we can get back to repaying our debt service obligations,” he said.
“Sooner the better for both countries,” he added.
In February, China’s Exim Bank gave Sri Lanka a two-year moratorium on its defaulted loans and said it would discuss additional re-structuring within that ‘window’.
In early March, Sri Lanka secured a 2.9 billion dollar extended fund facility from the IMF after obtaining assurances of support from China.
Comments (796)
If the US can't control them the US will burn and destroy their way out of Europe, then these countries can rebuild and choose to join the BRICS system...
The weapons manufactures and big pharmac are rolling in the money from covid and the restocking of old weapons donated to the Ukraine by many countries..
Black rock is after the rebuild contracts of war torn countries which is probably worth more than the weapons being handed out, Russia could be in on the act as well but i doubt it..
Black rock is said to have a rebuild contract for the western part of the Ukraine, i'm not sure about the Russian controlled part of the Ukraine;;
If Russia gives black rock rebuild contracts for their part of the Ukraine, then Russia is most likely in on the act too..
NZ got a free trade deal with the EU and its the horticulture sector that got in on that, the dairy and meat sector was shut out;;; but our horticulture sector maybe in for a shakeup with work ethics, practices and standards under the spot light from the EU..
Our foreign minister had talks with some top brass from the atomic agency about Japan dumping its treated nuclear waste water into the pacific ocean, the biggest complaint i heard was coming from the Japanese fisherman...
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Wednesday that it has approved a $3 billion loan agreement for Pakistan, unlocking crucial funding for the troubled South Asian economy.
Iran's navy commander said his country and Saudi Arabia, as well as three other Gulf states, plan to form a naval alliance that will also include India and Pakistan, Iranian media reported on Saturday.
"The countries of the region have today realized that only cooperation with each other brings security to the area," Iran's navy commander Shahram Irani was quoted as saying.
He did not elaborate on the shape of the alliance that he said would be formed soon.
In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran ended seven years of hostility under a China-mediated deal, stressing the need for regional stability and economic cooperation.
Naval commander Irani said the states that will take part in the alliance also include the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Pakistan, and India.
The BRICS group reveal their gold backed basket of currencies in the next month and a half, though not as reliable as the the US currency at moment the new trade deals will ensure the BRICS group are noticed..
Example's Gaddafi and Hussain..
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia
The list of the latest new members to the BRICS system is out, i didn't look to check the new members..
July 18, 2023
And now, the memorandum is to be automatically renewed in March 2024, unless Italy formally requests to withdraw from it three months in advance.
Now, facing what could be the biggest diplomatic test of her tenure, Meloni must make a decision before December. And we believe that at this juncture, it’s necessary to carefully consider the basic principles Italy should follow in making decisions regarding the BRI — a guideline that should also apply to the country’s economic relations with China more broadly.
One Belt one Road still has 151 member countries Butcher
One Belt one Road still has 151 member countries Butcher
Not all the main BRICS members are to keen on having to many new members, and India isn't very keen on the new currency idea..
Putin's playing the grain deal card as much as possible because Russian fertilizer is being blocked/held due to western sanctions, Ukraine grain ships are being suspected of transporting arms back to the Ukraine so Russia is saying...
Turkey will take a big hit in their economy with the bulk of Russian and Ukrainian raw grain being processed in Turkey, Erdogon may have backed himself into a corner on this 1..
Italy National Government Debt reached 3,104.0 USD bn in Apr 2023, Italy's Public Debt. 2,985,832,673,116 €. Convert to USD $1 545 802 776 904 (Trillion I guessing) 11 May 2023 Italian exports to China totaled $18.1 billion
Italy and Portugal, the public debt ratio is very high, at some 130% of GDP, and it is around 100% of GDP in Spain.
Greece America without disclosure granted large loan based on derivative trading and sent Greece under, at that time Italy Portuagal and Spain were in big trouble and Germany was heavy handed.
For the month of July, Pakistan's external debt service obligations stand at $2.44 billion for the month of July 2023. The debt also includes $2.44 billion for the current month of July 2023 owed to China, reports ANI quoting the News International.
Moreover, another $1 billion safe deposit from China is also due. This means that Pakistan and China are currently working on the rollover of around USD 3 billion bilateral debt within the ongoing month.
The terms that Russia wants for a return to the grain deal will never happen because of the west, so Russia will have to find a way to cut out the middleman (western countries) in the Aid that poorer countries rely on..
The middleman must make a pretty packet out food Aid to poorer countries, Shame on them..
Ukraine is part of Russia, whether Nazi's or little fat-boy likes it or not, whether pope likes it or not, whether Biden and his terrorist group NATO likes it or not.
Ukraine cannot be used or controlled by fat-boy, nazi, yanks or other to threaten the security of Russia.
When we look back Ukrainians protected the USSR naval ships, look back at the Cuban cries, which occurred because Kennedy deployed Nuclear Missiles in Italy and Turkey that threatened Russia,
In the current Ukraine cries when Putin offered talks with fat-boy Putin clearly stated that Russia would not let Ukraine manage defence or foreign policy those aspects would remain in the hands of Democrat Russian Federation.
Biden he wants America to continue funding its economy on mass-murder and maintain control of international monitory settlements, he is a lunatic.
Which is stirring up Kimi boy, doesn't the US have enough enemies ?
Putin doesn't have many options but to strangle the western economic system..
Netanyahu has got a pacemaker now, but he still managed to make it to the vote over their supreme courts..
Troubling times Butcher, Japan been firing shore to ship missiles this last week here in rooland. That country's PM is looking for trouble I think. Both America & Russia occupying powers within, the latter Islands of Japan. While China can spit on them north Korea can toss shit over the top of them and there PM is sucking B's salt
The yanks probably shot it down, they have a reputation for firing on their friends..
Four people are feared dead after an Australian Army helicopter crashed into the ocean off north Queensland — the second emergency involving the trouble-plagued MRH90 Taipan fleet in less than six months.
It is not clear yet what caused the helicopter to ditch into waters near Hamilton Island at about 10:30pm on Friday during a two-helicopter training mission.
The fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters, which has been in service with the Australian Army since 2007, has been constantly plagued by issues related to maintenance and poor availability of spare parts, although it is considered better than the Black Hawk performance-wise.
France, West Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom got together in 1985 and drafted a scheme to develop a new fly-by-wire, multipurpose helicopter—the NH90. The U.K. soon left the project.
On June 19, 2014, an engine on one of the deployed NH90s exploded during a training mission over Uzbekistan. On Nov. 17, the German aviation security advisory board grounded the whole fleet
Former prime minister John Howard had originally been advised by Defence to purchase the Black Hawks over the Taipan back in 2004.
Since being added to the Australian Defence Force fleet in 2007, the multi-role helicopters, which weigh more than six tonnes, have been involved in a raft of other safety incidents.
In 2019, the 47-strong Taipan fleet was grounded after a helicopter was forced to land due to a tail rotor vibration.
Howard government’s decision to acquire the European-sourced MRH90 rather than the American S-70M Black Hawk was taken against the advice provided from Defence. Because those deliberations are covered by Cabinet confidentiality, we can’t be sure why that was the case. Votes
The Taipans are developed by an Australian company backed by the manufacturing branch of French aero giant Airbus.
Prime Minister John Howard without consulting Parliament committed military personnel to Afghanistan war in October 2001 after the 11 September attacks on the World Trade Centre that was carried out by Saudi Arabians & Egyptians. Howard had a front row seat when the planes flew into the towers.
In August 2003, on the request of the UN and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the terrorist organization NATO took command of ISAF. Soon after, the UN mandated ISAF's gradual expansion outside of Kabul. While not technically a UN force, ISAF was a UN-mandated international force under Chapter VII of the UN Charter and Australia sucked up to that lot of clowns
I see Putin is offering free grain to 6 African countries due to Ukrainian grain not getting to Africa, the Ukrainian is being held or sold to European countries probably to pay for their war aid...
Germany's industry and manufacturing is slowing down because of high costs, German companies are looking at setting up their business in other countries;; sounds like an old record thats been played many times before...
I see Putin is offering free grain to 6 African countries due to Ukrainian grain not getting to Africa, the Ukrainian is being held or sold to European countries probably to pay for their war aid...
Germany's industry and manufacturing is slowing down because of high costs, German companies are looking at setting up their business in other countries;; sounds like an old record thats been played many times before...
Putin is offering free grain to 6 African countries : both China and Russia supported African countries, e.g China deployed troops in the Congo, Russia exports mostly grain (and to a lesser extent fuel) to a small group of countries - mainly Algeria and Egypt, but also Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania and South Africa.
e.g. China & Iran shuts down Straits of Hormuz and also China & Russia close down transit around Cape of Good Hope bottom South Africa.
December 26, 2001, Argentina defaulted on a total of US$93 billion of its external debt, this year Argentina's inflation to reach 147% in 2023, GDP could fall up to 3.5%
The depression, which began after the Russian and Brazilian financial crises,caused widespread unemployment, riots, the fall of the government, a default on the country's foreign debt, the rise of alternative currencies and the end of the peso's fixed exchange rate to the US dollar. Argentine President Alberto Fernandez last year signed up for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to receive more than $23 billion in Chinese investments.
You better buy a Horse Butcher
Germany's industry and manufacturing is slowing: Catholic Olaf Scholz is quite lot like Hitler he is ready to station a 4000-strong army brigade in Lithuania on a permanent basis to strengthen NATO's eastern flank, an idiot.
Which country has taken highest loan from IMF?
3 July 2023: in terms of loans from the IMF, Argentina ranked first with USD 46 billion, Egypt stood in second place with USD 18 billion, Ukraine came in third with USD 12.2 billion, Ecuador took the fourth spot with USD 8.2 billion, and Pakistan was at fifth position with USD 7.4 billion.
Khar, Pakistan. A powerful bomb ripped through a political rally by supporters of a hard-line cleric and political leader on Sunday in the country’s northwestern Bajur district, police and health officials said. At least 40 people were killed and nearly 200 wounded, including children, in one of the worst attacks in recent years.
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman's party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work.
Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
and:
Jakarta. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Thursday flew to Chengdu to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, with talks on trade and investment likely to be high on the agenda.
Jokowi also plans to bring up the topic of the South China Sea. This highly contested body of water has become one of the primary concerns for ASEAN which Indonesia is chairing this year.
“The visit [to Chengdu] coincides with the 10th anniversary of the Indonesia-China comprehensive strategic partnership. China is Indonesia’s top investor and trading partner,” Jokowi said in Jakarta shortly before his flight.
“President Jinping and I will discuss a number of priority issues, including investment and our strategic projects. As well as on trade, healthcare, as well as regional and global matters,” Jokowi said.
Forget about buying a horse Rob, i'll down scale to a scooter first..
What's happened to the US rust bucket sub that's around Saudi Arabia and Iran, has it been recalled somewhere else ?
The Ukraine has turned into the next play thing for the western system, basically being played into never ending debt like the African countries have been for so long..
An Iranian official says Iran’s navy obliged a US submarine to surface as it entered the Gulf “violating its border” in the latest report of an apparent confrontation between Iranian and US forces in the region.
“The US submarine was approaching while submerged, but the Iranian submarine Fateh detected it and carried out manoeuvres to force it to surface as it went through the Strait [of Hormuz]. It had also entered into our territorial waters but it corrected its course after being warned,” navy commander Shahram Irani told state television on Thursday.
United States Fifth Fleet
After a 48-year hiatus, the Fifth Fleet was reactivated, replacing and it now directs operations in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, and Arabian Sea. Its headquarters are at NSA Bahrain located in Manama, Bahrain.
5th Fleet is currently deployed in the Persian Gulf, the naval forces included: two carriers, 20 ships, 103 strike aircraft, approximately 20,000 sailors and marines.
something like tat
Meanwhile Gwadar port's strategic location provides easy access to some of the world's most vital sea lanes. It also offers a shorter trade route between China and the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.
China had already acquired control of Gwadar Port on 16 May 2013. Originally valued at $46 billion, the value of CPEC projects was worth $62 billion as of 2020. In 2022, the Chinese investment in Pakistan rose to $65 billion. China refers to this project as revival of the Silk Road.
I saw the other day that France in looking at taking military action in Niger after a coup and govt takeover there, Niger is France's main supply of Uranium which powers %75 of France's electricity grid..
I wonder if they have a rating for the BRICS currencies..
I wonder if they have a rating for the BRICS currencies..
Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum and former director of the Congressional Budget Office, said that Fitch's decision was the right one, given that there are few efforts in Washington to address the government’s longstanding budget deficit.
“This is about a fundamental mismatch over the long term between our spending growth and our revenue capabilities,” he said.
NEW YORK, April 12, 2018 – Hearst announced today that it has purchased from Fimalac S.A. an additional 20 percent interest in global financial information services company Fitch Group, bringing Hearst's equity interest to 100 percent. The transaction is valued at $2.8 billion. Hearst acquired its original interest in Fitch Group in 2006, and increased its holdings to 80 percent in 2015.
Biden calls for Niger president to be released after military coup, there's about 1100 US and 1500 French troops in Niger in support of the puppet president...
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Since establishing ties in 2017, China has invested significant effort in Panama and made important, if uneven, progress in building influence.(The Diplomate site)
By R. Evan Ellis
March 25, 2023
From March 12-18, I traveled to Panama to interview government officials, businesspeople, and others about the country’s evolving relationship with China. My trip came shortly after a Chinese donation of military gear including 6,000 bulletproof vests and helmets to Panama’s security forces, as well as congressional testimony by the head of U.S. Southern Command, General Laura Richardson, in which she warned of the strategic risks from China’s presence in Panama.
The Panama Canal sits at the nexus of international political and economic concerns. Following the Canal’s expansion in 2016, the waterway annually registers nearly 14,000 transits, a value equal to 6 percent of global trade. The Canal’s global shipping role has only increased amid the disruption of global supply chains during the Covid-19 pandemic and U.S. calls for nearshoring away from China.
Only Panama may operate the Canal or maintain military installations in Panamanian territory. The United States, however, reserved the right to exert military force in defense of the Panama Canal against any threat to its neutrality.
In 2016, in a $900 million deal, the China-based Landbridge Group acquired control of Margarita Island, Panama’s largest port on the Atlantic side and in the Colón Free Trade Zone, the largest free trade zone in the Western Hemisphere. The deal established the Panama-Colón Container Port (PCCP) as a deep-water port for megaships, and the construction and expansion was carried out by the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), a company also active in China’s island-building initiatives in the South China Sea, and the China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC). The location of the port on the Canal has since allowed China to capitalize on Canal expansion.
People are shocked that America, a country that’s so strategically important, is pretty much losing its grip in the region. Trade between China and Latin America has gone through the roof, from US$12 billion in 2000 to a huge US$495 billion today, making Beijing the region’s biggest trading partner.
China–Venezuela relations are the international relations between the People's Republic of China and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Formal diplomatic relations between both countries were established in August 1944 and switched recognition to the PRC in 1974.
Although Venezuela has the greatest amount of oil reserves outside of the Middle East, the type of oil it produces, its geographical location, and its relationship with the US inhibited Chavez's administration's ability to increase oil exports to China.
In addition to Venezuela, Beijing has expanded its influence on other Central American and Caribbean nations, Central American think tank Expediente Abierto indicated in a June 2023 report. “A clear example [of this] is manifested in the diplomatic offensive in which several regional governments have cut relations with the Republic of China/Taiwan and recognized the People’s Republic of China,” the report says.