If China doesn't act like private sector, BRI partners may desert Silk Road

China wasn't really prepared for the hurdles faced by big-ticket investments in countries with messy, more accountable politics

You may not have noticed, what with the outbreak of trade war with the US and all, but China’s economic diplomacy has had a bad few weeks. The country’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative is dealing with ever-greater resistance, slowing a momentum that once seemed unstoppable. In fact, I’d argue that the BRI is stalled.

The clearest sign of this, perhaps, was the news that Malaysia had halted Chinese projects worth $22 billion, including a controversial rail link along the country’s east coast. The decision looked inevitable after May’s elections. One of the pillars of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s successful campaign