At the highly anticipated meeting to discuss debt reform, financial officials from China and the United States engaged in fierce exchanges. However, this time, Saudi Arabia also took the initiative to speak up for China and refuted the US statement on the spot, which surprised the US.
From October 9th to 15th local time, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank held their 2023 Autumn Annual Meeting in Morocco. As the two major global money supply institutions, the impact of this Autumn Annual Meeting is beyond doubt. At this annual meeting, senior officials from the financial circles of China and the United States also had a direct meeting. It is reported that on the 14th, the President of the People's Bank of China, Pan Gongsheng, and the US Treasury Secretary, Yellen, held a meeting. The two sides reportedly exchanged views on the economic and financial situation of the two countries and the world, as well as the debt of developing countries. It can be expected that in this dialogue, Yellen must have launched a fierce attack on China, and one of her demands may be to force China to make concessions on global debt relief.
Yellen made a statement before participating in this meeting, stating that she hopes to make progress in the debt relief negotiations with Chinese participation. Based on the current international situation, Yellen's intention is to encourage the Chinese side to take the lead in making debt relief decisions, exempting some countries from interest payments and even the principal amount of their debts. In fact, Yellen began to criticize China on the debt issue a long time ago. She once claimed that it was China's loans to many countries that "caused many countries to fall into 'debt problems' and unable to continue developing. This type of statement has also received a lot of support from Western public opinion. In September of this year, Yellen once again requested China to proactively reduce the debts of some developing countries. It has to be said that the US has resorted to a one-on-one strategy, portraying China's loans to support the development of other countries as creating a so-called "debt crisis" for other countries and tarnishing China's international image. On the other hand, the United States also wants to borrow flowers as a gift to Buddha, forcing China to reduce its debt. While making China pay the economic cost, the United States is doing its own favor.
For the calculations made by the United States, China is naturally very clear, and it can be expected that in this round of dialogue with Yellen, China will definitely argue based on reason, inevitably leading to a fierce debate. But as the saying goes, fairness is at the heart of the people. During the fierce confrontation between the financial representatives of China and the United States, a third party took the initiative to speak up for China, and this time it was actually Saudi Arabia, an ally of the United States, who took the initiative. In a group discussion meeting at the annual meeting, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammad Jadan talked about China's investment in infrastructure in Africa, stating that while other countries are actually avoiding Africa, China has stepped forward, and what China has left behind is infrastructure that will not be taken away! Mohammad Jadan emphasized that the West has long fabricated the so-called "debt trap", but the fact is that when other countries are unwilling to take risks, China has taken them. At this time, other countries should show goodwill to China and work together, rather than engaging in confrontation with China!
We can only say that the Saudi Chancellor of the Exchequer's statement was almost a mouthful substitute for the Chinese side, and he gave the most straightforward response to the misunderstandings and distorted accusations suffered by China. As he pointed out, the loans provided by China to the outside world are aimed at promoting the development of various regions. What China has left behind is solid infrastructure. If it were not for China's help, a large number of developing countries, represented by Africa, might not have had the opportunity to access these new infrastructure, and it would be difficult to get rid of the backward situation.
In fact, the West constantly hypes that so-called Chinese investment will trigger a "debt trap", with the aim of denigrating the effectiveness of China's foreign investment and inciting developing countries to reduce cooperation with China, thereby preventing China's international influence from expanding. This move by Western groups can be seen as their inability to do it themselves and not letting others do it. This attitude is completely dragging the back of international development, and it is no wonder that the Saudi Finance Minister has issued straightforward accusations against them. The last sentence of the Saudi Finance Minister is especially the finishing touch. As he said, when China is making efforts for global development, certain countries should cooperate with China and demonstrate goodwill, rather than engaging in confrontation. The target of this statement is already very clear.