India has
not sent an official delegation to attend the "Belt and Road Forum"
in Beijing and instead criticized China's global initiative, warning of an
"unsustainable debt
burden" for countries involved.
Chinese
President Xi Jinping is hosting dozens of world leaders and senior officials on
Sunday for the country's biggest diplomatic showcase of the year, touting his
vision of a new "Silk Road" that opens trade routes across the globe.
Government
officials from New Delhi did not travel, Indian officials said, although
scholars from Indian think-tanks have flown to Beijing to attend some of the
meetings at the forum.
Indian
foreign ministry spokesman Gopal Baglay, asked whether New Delhi was
participating in the summit, said India could not accept a project that
compromised its sovereignty.
India is
incensed that one of the key Belt and Road projects passes through Kashmir and
Pakistan. The nuclear-armed rivals have fought two of their three wars over the
disputed region.
"No
country can accept a project that ignores its core concerns on sovereignty and
territorial integrity," Baglay said.
He also
warned of the danger of debt. One of the criticisms of the Silk Road plan is
that host countries may struggle to pay back loans for huge infrastructure
projects being carried out and funded by Chinese companies and banks.
"Connectivity
initiatives must follow principles of financial responsibility to avoid
projects that would create unsustainable debt burden for communities,"
Baglay said.
New Delhi's
criticism of the Belt and Road initiative came as Xi pledged $124 billion to
the plan, and called for the abandonment of old models based on rivalry and
diplomatic power games.
Leaders from
29 countries and ministerial delegates from many more are attending the forum
in Beijing, including India's smaller neighbors - not just Pakistan, but also
Sri Lanka and Nepal.
Baglay said
India supported greater connectivity across the region and listed the
initiatives it was involved in, including highway projects and the North-South
corridor in Central Asia, but he said these had to be developed in a
transparent manner.
"We are
of firm belief that connectivity initiatives must be based on universally
recognized international norms, good governance, rule of law, openness,
transparency and equality," he said in a statement.
As well as
the corridor through Pakistan, India is worried more broadly about China's
economic and diplomatic expansion through Asia, and in particular across
countries and waterways that it considers to be its sphere of influence.
REUTERS*
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