Maldives' new president warns state coffers 'looted' after China-led boom

[rooster59]

Maldives' new president warns state coffers 'looted' after China-led boom

By Sanjeev Miglani

 

Maldives' President-elect Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (L) takes the oath conducted by Chief Justice Dr Ahmed Abdulla Didi (R) during the swearing-in ceremony in Male, Maldives November 17, 2018. REUTERS/Ashwa Faheem

 

MALE (Reuters) - The new president of the Maldives took office on Saturday, declaring the state coffers to have been looted and warned that the country was in financial difficulty after racking up debt with Chinese lenders in an infrastructure boom.

 

The Maldives, famous for its luxury resorts on palm-fringed islands, is the latest in a number of small countries where China has invested millions of dollars building highways and housing as part of its Belt and Road Initiative.

 

But these projects have left the country of just over 400,000 people in debt and prompted calls for investigations into how contracts were awarded to Chinese companies during the previous administration.

 

"As I take over the presidency, the state's financial situation is precarious. The damage done due to projects conducted only for political reasons, and at a loss, are huge," said Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in a speech soon after he was sworn in as president.

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, which is seeking to claw back ground in a country it considered as part of its area of influence, was the highest ranking foreign visitor at the ceremony held in a soccer stadium in the capital Male.

 

Solih, a veteran lawmaker, won the presidential election in September as a joint opposition candidate against president Abdullah Yameen, a strongman who steered the country closer to China and faced international pressure over imprisoning political rivals.

 

"The state coffers have lost several billions of rufiyaa (local currency) due to embezzlement and corruption conducted at different levels of the government," Solih said.

 

He said it wasn't clear how much the state had lost. His transition team said this week it would conduct a forensic audit of deals sealed by the Yameen administration, many of them with Chinese state firms.

 

The big worry for Solih's team is the debt the country has run up with Chinese lenders for projects such as a mile-long sea bridge connecting the airport to the capital, the airport expansion itself and massive housing projects on reclaimed islands. [L4N1XR4CI]

 

Solih's transition team said it had been told the country owed $1.5 billion to Chinese lenders, but fear it could be much higher. Even a debt of $1.5 billion would be more than a quarter of the country's annual gross domestic product.

 

Modi told Solih that India stood ready to help the Maldives through its economic difficulties, the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement following their meeting.

 

India, which has long been the Maldives' main political and economic partner, had grown concerned that China's expansive diplomacy was aimed at establishing an outpost on the islands.

 

China has already gained a strong foothold in Sri Lanka, just off the southern coast of India, where it has a built a port and now controls it in a debt-for-equity swap.

 

Modi and Solih agreed the two countries would be mindful of each other’s concerns and the need for stability in the Indian Ocean, the Indian foreign ministry said in the statement.

 

China has said it hoped there would be continuity in policies during Solih's presidency and it would create good conditions for Chinese firms.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-11-18

 

 

[taichiplanet]

who'd have thought that would happen! Get ready to hand over a strategic port to the Chinese, as happened in Zambia  and Sri Lanka.

[overherebc]

And here endeth the first lesson.

Chapter 1

Gospel of St Beijing.

Edit.

Goon show 1960's

 

We will now take the Regimental Oath.

 

Open your wallets and say after me.

'Help yourself'

[DrJack54]

4 minutes ago, overherebc said:

And here endeth the first lesson.

Chapter 1

Gospel of St Beijing.

So true! Sadly.

Anyone been to Shinokville recently. Why did China invest a zillion there. Answer 1. Goodwill and tourism. 2. Deep sea port.

Yes #2....you win free weekend to Beijing grand hotel. 

[holy cow cm]

China is more evil than evil

[Enoon]

 

A good job those Maldivians are not ordinary Thai people.

 

If they were we'd all be blaming them for being greedy and stupid, involving themselves with loan sharks, racking up debt they could not afford to pay back.

 

But, so far, it's only the lenders fault.

 

 

[Lupatria]

China invested about $ 300 billion in Africa between 2005 and 2018 alone. With Chinese money, infrastructure projects such as railway lines and airports are being built in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya and Burkina Faso. But the African countries pay a high price for it ...
Because the Chinese government wants to make not only their profits with their billions, but also gain political influence - and with some unscrupulous means.

http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/2138499/why-borrowers-chinas-belt-and-road-will-go-euphoria-depression

[andre47]

Everybody who takes money either from a friend, a bank or from China must know that he has to pay a price for it. Nothing is for free.

 

The only problem is if corruption is involved.

[Basil B]

Similar thing happened in the UK, hospitals, schools and other projects were built by commercial interests and leased back, it was called PFI (private finance initiative), now many of the trusts that run these hospitals, schools, etc, can no longer afford the escalating lease repayments. 

 

Most scariest of all is the Hinkley Point Nuclear Power Station with not only Chinese investment but Chinese reactors as well.

[Tailwagsdog]

Some of the South East Asian leaders have been talking about how they may have to choose sides or countries. This is the most abhorent rubbish i have ever heard. There is only one choice! Choose Democracy, Freedom, Human Rights! OR you can live in an orwellian world where your movements are watched & scrutinized, your religion is banned & you are interned, you disappear, you cannot question authority, you are there for the state apparatus. Game Over!

[tonbridgebrit]

16 minutes ago, Tailwagsdog said:

Some of the South East Asian leaders have been talking about how they may have to choose sides or countries. This is the most abhorent rubbish i have ever heard. There is only one choice! Choose Democracy, Freedom, Human Rights! OR you can live in an orwellian world where your movements are watched & scrutinized, your religion is banned & you are interned, you disappear, you cannot question authority, you are there for the state apparatus. Game Over!

What ???   ????
So, when the Far East countries choose China, it's game over for them ? 

But when Australia exports a mountain of coal and iron ore to China, that's okay ? When the EU and Britain are going all out to do more trade with China, and bring in more Chinese tourists, that's okay ?
Do you reckon Trump is correct when he wants to reduce trade with China ? Do realise, America exports a vast amount of farm products to China. A reduction in trade will hurt America, as well as China.


Get real. Planet earth needs China, needs Chinese investments and Chinese tourists. Don't bother trying to say that the Maldives got it wrong by dealing with China. And don't you dare claim that Thailand has got it all wrong by having ever-increasing trade links with China. And more and more Chinese tourists in Pattaya as well.

[bristolboy]

12 minutes ago, tonbridgebrit said:

What ???   ????
So, when the Far East countries choose China, it's game over for them ? 

But when Australia exports a mountain of coal and iron ore to China, that's okay ? When the EU and Britain are going all out to do more trade with China, and bring in more Chinese tourists, that's okay ?
Do you reckon Trump is correct when he wants to reduce trade with China ? Do realise, America exports a vast amount of farm products to China. A reduction in trade will hurt America, as well as China.


Get real. Planet earth needs China, needs Chinese investments and Chinese tourists. Don't bother trying to say that the Maldives got it wrong by dealing with China. And don't you dare claim that Thailand has got it all wrong by having ever-increasing trade links with China. And more and more Chinese tourists in Pattaya as well.

No, the EU and Britain are not going all out to do more trade with China. In fact, they are moving to sharply limit Chinese purchasing of techologically advanced companies located in the EU.

https://www.politico.eu/article/eus-big-3-seek-greater-role-for-brussels-to-stop-chinese-takeovers/

And the Chinese have behaved disgracefully in Sri Lanka.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/world/asia/china-sri-lanka-port.html

And in Laos:

http://www.atimes.com/article/laos-track-china-debt-trap/

And in Malaysia too where their inroads are being reversed now that the previous corrupt government has been thrown out.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/20/world/asia/china-malaysia.html

 

[Redline]

4 hours ago, Enoon said:

 

A good job those Maldivians are not ordinary Thai people.

 

If they were we'd all be blaming them for being greedy and stupid, involving themselves with loan sharks, racking up debt they could not afford to pay back.

 

But, so far, it's only the lenders fault.

 

 

I think they are blaming both parties responsible 

[zydeco]

8 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Solih's transition team said it had been told the country owed $1.5 billion to Chinese lenders, but fear it could be much higher. Even a debt of $1.5 billion would be more than a quarter of the country's annual gross domestic product.

Just nationalize the Chinese "investments" and kick them out. A few more countries do that and the Chinese will be left holding the bag.  Unless they intend to invade.  

[Krataiboy]

The words "chicken" and "roost" come to mind. Napoleon got it right when he said, “China is a sleeping giant. Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will move the world.”

 

Not just moving it, it seems - but well on the way to owning much of it.

[puipuitom]

5 hours ago, Lupatria said:

China invested about $ 300 billion in Africa between 2005 and 2018 alone. With Chinese money, infrastructure projects such as railway lines and airports are being built in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya and Burkina Faso. But the African countries pay a high price for it ...
Because the Chinese government wants to make not only their profits with their billions, but also gain political influence - and with some unscrupulous means.

http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/2138499/why-borrowers-chinas-belt-and-road-will-go-euphoria-depression

The Europeans just GAVE it... to the politicians often, with result an ever growing corruption.

[Burma Bill]

6 hours ago, holy cow cm said:

China is more evil than evil

Yes indeed - DITCH them now because they will become a pain in the neck. Let Chinese businesses suffer!

[Ulic]

If you can show malfeasance on the part of the Chinese companies or the former government just void the loans as criminal projects. Ship those involved to China to face justice. Wash your hand of it. China has to realize not all "investments" pay off.  

[Dizer]

Looks like in the south Asia and and south east Asia, India is the only counter to the chinese. Democracy will always triumph over communism.

[bendejo]

Sometimes money is lent out with the full knowledge that the borrower will not be able to pay it off.  Then the lender can dictate other terms, and the borrower has no choice.  See IMF playbook for further details.  Or the Mafia.

 

Anyway, isn't the Maldives about to disappear due to rising sea levels?  Creditors can't get blood from sea water.  Or can they?

 

 

[Tailwagsdog]

13 hours ago, tonbridgebrit said:

What ???   ????
So, when the Far East countries choose China, it's game over for them ? 

But when Australia exports a mountain of coal and iron ore to China, that's okay ? When the EU and Britain are going all out to do more trade with China, and bring in more Chinese tourists, that's okay ?
Do you reckon Trump is correct when he wants to reduce trade with China ? Do realise, America exports a vast amount of farm products to China. A reduction in trade will hurt America, as well as China.


Get real. Planet earth needs China, needs Chinese investments and Chinese tourists. Don't bother trying to say that the Maldives got it wrong by dealing with China. And don't you dare claim that Thailand has got it all wrong by having ever-increasing trade links with China. And more and more Chinese tourists in Pattaya as well.

Like i said the world needs to choose freedom & democracy & peoples rights over a dictatorship run by Adolf Xi that interns people for religious and political beliefs, controls its citizens by spying on them, corrupts small countries, and the list goes on ...  yes we sell to them the ordinary  people have to eat & keep warm however the world has to help the chinese people find freedom & democracy and get rid of this cancer called the chinese communist party CCP & Adolf Xi.

[Tailwagsdog]

3 hours ago, bendejo said:

Sometimes money is lent out with the full knowledge that the borrower will not be able to pay it off.  Then the lender can dictate other terms, and the borrower has no choice.  See IMF playbook for further details.  Or the Mafia.

 

Anyway, isn't the Maldives about to disappear due to rising sea levels?  Creditors can't get blood from sea water.  Or can they?

 

 

Haven't you seen what the Chinese Military did to the Phillipines Islands after they stole them.

[tonbridgebrit]

13 hours ago, bristolboy said:

No, the EU and Britain are not going all out to do more trade with China. In fact, they are moving to sharply limit Chinese purchasing of techologically advanced companies located in the EU.

https://www.politico.eu/article/eus-big-3-seek-greater-role-for-brussels-to-stop-chinese-takeovers/

And the Chinese have behaved disgracefully in Sri Lanka.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/world/asia/china-sri-lanka-port.html

And in Laos:

http://www.atimes.com/article/laos-track-china-debt-trap/

And in Malaysia too where their inroads are being reversed now that the previous corrupt government has been thrown out.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/20/world/asia/china-malaysia.html

 

That article you've put up about the EU. It is not about the EU wanting to reduce trade (imports and exports) with China. It's about the EU trying to limit the sale of EU technologically advanced companies to Chinese companies. Okay, about EU technology companies being sold to Chinese companies. Well, we accept that, the ones being sold right now, well, nobody is forcing them to be sold, right ? As in, Chinese company comes along, offers to pay good money to buy the EU technology company, and EU company accepts the money. Surely, it's the freedom of any company to sell itself to whatever bidder, if it wishes to do so ?  But, yes, you're right, this latest move is an attempt to reduce EU companies being sold to Chinese companies.

But back to trade. No way is the EU thinking about slapping extra taxes onto the Chinese goods entering Europe. The EU is not going to do, what Trump is doing, slapping taxes onto Chinese imports. And the EU certainly is interested in exporting more goods to China. Who on earth wants to reduce their exports to China ? Surely, nobody ?  Australia is certainly not interested in reducing their exports of coal and iron ore to China.


About the Maldives. It's the same in Africa, Latin America, and other developing countries. These countries still remember colonialism, colonialism done by Europe. Mass exploitation. It's not surprising that these countries have spent the last decade or more, accepting Chinese investments.

[tonbridgebrit]

10 minutes ago, Tailwagsdog said:

Haven't you seen what the Chinese Military did to the Phillipines Islands after they stole them.

The Phillipines ??  Duterte is the democratically elected leader of that nation. And Duterte is "fully in" with Beijing. Thailand is also "fully in" with Beijing. 

For the Maldives, they should find out who looted the coffers. And then carry on with deals and trade with China.

[tonbridgebrit]

21 minutes ago, Tailwagsdog said:

Like i said the world needs to choose freedom & democracy & peoples rights over a dictatorship run by Adolf Xi that interns people for religious and political beliefs, controls its citizens by spying on them, corrupts small countries, and the list goes on ...  yes we sell to them the ordinary  people have to eat & keep warm however the world has to help the chinese people find freedom & democracy and get rid of this cancer called the chinese communist party CCP & Adolf Xi.

We've already tried 'regime change' in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, it doesn't really work. Who on earth reckons it can work in China ?

What's this really about ? Australia and others are exporting a huge amount of natural resources to China, and China is converting the natural resources into maufactured goods. The goods are then exported to America and Europe. Some people simply don't like it when they see most of the goods at their retailer is made in China. Some people don't like to see lots of Chinese tourists in almost every country.

Whether China is a democracy or not, those who don't like Chinese goods flooding America and Europe, and who don't like Chinese tourists everywhere, well, they will still regard China as a threat. Do you really think that, if China was a democracy, then China flooding planet earth with cheap manufactured goods would be okay ?   ????

As for "Adolf Xi" cracking down on the Muslims in China, well. Lots of people in Europe and America would secretly love to see all (or most) mosques closed in their own country. Lots of Americans and Europeans secretly want to see 'no more Muslims entering into our place'.  And they want to condemn China for doing stuff ?  The hypocrisy of people !   ????

[andre47]

6 hours ago, Dizer said:

Looks like in the south Asia and and south east Asia, India is the only counter to the chinese. Democracy will always triumph over communism.

China has no Communism ???? 

 

[kannot]

no problem, just ramp up the global warming rhetoric and funds  will flood  in to save  the Maldives..............should have been underwater by  now according to news stories from 20 years ago, instead their own greed has done for them.

[KittenKong]

2 hours ago, tonbridgebrit said:

The Phillipines ??  Duterte is the democratically elected leader of that nation.

I think the reference was to the Spratlys.

 

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

 

[Sir Swagman]

There would seem to be a couple of ways to assume territory. One is by conquest which is expensive and if not fully successful has little to show for it at the conclusion. The other is the current Chinese model - you buy it, less waste and you always have the goods to show for the expense. The Chinese have patience and they will slowly but surely control the world through purchase. Whilst not great, it is preferable than the alternative.

 

[Benmart]

20 hours ago, Enoon said:

 

A good job those Maldivians are not ordinary Thai people.

 

If they were we'd all be blaming them for being greedy and stupid, involving themselves with loan sharks, racking up debt they could not afford to pay back.

 

But, so far, it's only the lenders fault.

 

 

Thailand was not mentioned in the article, except by you. Focus please.