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Event Brief: Belt and Road Initiative Forum in Xiamen, China

Xiamen – On September 9th, FAO Global CEO Brandon Hughes, attended an all-day forum focused on the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) from both a Chinese business perspective and government. This forum was part of the 20th China International Fair for Investment and Trade held in Xiamen City, Fujian province, China. The event was attended by provincial and city leaders from Xiamen and Fujian, as well the Ambassador to Beijing from Slovakia, the U.S. State Department, and an emissary from Egypt. – Brandon Hughes

Malaysia May Cancel Two Major Belt & Road Projects

On Tuesday, August 21, Malaysian president Mahathir Mohamad concluded his first visit in Beijing. During his 5-day visit, Mohamad re-negotiated with China for some $22 billion U.S. dollar infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (also known as the One Belt One Road (OBOR) Initiative), in an effort to free Malaysia from their national debt crisis. Unlike his Beijing-friendly precursor, Mahathir is attempting to cancel two major China-backed infrastructure projects already in agreement with Beijing. – Weiting Li

Event Brief: Impacts to U.S. Firms from the Belt & Road Initiative

On June 29th 2018, the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) hosted an event on China’s Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) and how firms can work to mitigate the impacts. Since opened on May 14, 2017, BRI has initiated massive development projects that aim to improve infrastructure in developing countries throughout Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and South Asia. Due to high demand and a lack of quality infrastructure in those countries, BRI is highly welcomed and needed. As increasing capital flows from both public and private sectors, today’s panel focused on what the opportunities and risks are for investors in terms of global governance and the regional impacts of BRI. The moderator for the panel was Abdulwanhab Alkebsi, the managing director for programs at CIPE, and the panel invited 3 experts from CSIS, Brookings, and CIPE to discuss on issues related to investment in BRI and global governance.

Chinese Enterprises Expand Oversea by Buying Utilities

As of May 30, Chinese construction firm, Gezhouba Group, acquired Brazilian water supply company Sistema Productor São Lourenço as part of the expansive the Belt and Road Initiative. The project is expected to help alleviate water shortage problems in Sao Paulo. Some experts are concerned that China is trying to expand its renewable energy influence in international markets by buying up foreign utility firms. – Ziqing Zhang

Canada blocks Chinese company from acquiring Aecon

In the last week of May, the Canadian government announced that it was blocking a proposed $1.18 billion acquisition of the Canadian firm Aecon Group Inc. by the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), citing national security concerns. Had the deal gone through, CCCC would have potentially received troves of documents from the Canadian government detailing government contracts, including nuclear reactors agreements.