10 jan 2018 ano - Australia lashes out at China’s ‘useless’ Pacific projects

Descrição:

Australia has launched a scathing attack on China’s efforts to build influence in the Pacific, accusing Beijing of currying favour with the region’s smaller nations by funnelling cash into little-used infrastructure projects.

The spat threatens to further strain relations between the two countries, which deteriorated last month after Canberra proposed new laws designed to tackle growing espionage threats and foreign interference in domestic politics.

China’s embassy in Canberra has previously rejected the claims of meddling, saying they were “made up out of thin air and filled with cold war mentality and ideological bias, reflected a typical anti-China hysteria”, and were “to the detriment of political mutual trust”.

China transferred $1.8bn in aid and loans to South Pacific nations between 2006 and 2016, according to research by the Lowy Institute, a think-tank.

https://www.lowyinstitute.org/chinese-aid-map/

https://www.ft.com/content/9bd0cb6a-f5a6-11e7-8715-e94187b3017e