China appears to be shifting its strategic focus toward Southeast Asia and Africa, Sri Lanka¡¯s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said, noting that South Asian countries in financial trouble aren¡¯t getting the same attention from Beijing as before.
In an interview Monday, Rajapaksa said that Sri Lanka couldn¡¯t tap a $1.5 billion credit line from Beijing and has yet to hear back on his request to President Xi Jinping for a $1 billion loan to buy essential goods. He said China indicated it would help Sri Lanka, while adding that ¡°usually they don¡¯t like¡± lending out more money to cover earlier debt payments.
¡°My analysis is that China has shifted their strategic focus into Southeast Asia,¡± Rajapaksa said in an interview Monday at his official residence in Colombo. ¡°They see more strategic interest in Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia, that region, and Africa.¡±
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