‘Silk Road’ deals behind soft ASEAN stance on China? – 1 May 2017

• The Philippines could be hoping for good deals in China’s “New Silk Road” summit, a former Philippine envoy said 1 May.
• Former Ambassador Apolinario Lozada Jr. said this could be the reason behind Manila leading the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) soft stance against the economic giant, which has reclaimed several islands in the South China Sea.
• Lozada, however, said he doesn’t believe the Philippines will bag deals better than those that could be secured by Singapore and Malaysia.
• He said the two countries “have a vibrant relationship with China despite the fact that openly in multilateral negotiations, they openly tell China what they think to protect their national interest.”
• The “New Silk Road” summit or the “One Belt, One Road” initiative is a landmark program to invest billions of dollars in infrastructure projects including railways, ports, and power grids.
• China has dedicated USD40bn to a Silk Road Fund and the idea was the driving force behind the establishment of the USD50bn China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

External Link : http://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/01/17/silk-road-deals-behind-soft-asean-stance-on-china