China says Belt and Road initiative is not a debt trap

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's ambitious "Belt and Road" projects are not a debt trap, and some countries' high debt levels are long-standing and not to be blamed on the initiative, a senior official at China's state planner said on Monday.

Ning Jizhe, vice-chairman of the National Development Reform Commission (NDRC), made the remarks at a news conference in Beijing.

The Belt and Road initiative, first mentioned in a speech Chinese President Xi Jinping gave in Kazakhstan in 2013, is a vehicle for Beijing to take a greater role on the international stage by funding and building global transport and trade links in more than 60 countries.

 

(Reporting by Elias Glenn; Writing by Yawen Chen; Editing by Richard Borsuk)