US says projec­t unlike­ly to help Italy econom­ically, could signif­icantl­y damage its imageLONDON: Italy plans to sign a memorandum of understanding to become a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) by the end of March, a move which has drawn critical reaction from the United States, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. The United States said the project was unlikely to help Italy economically and could significantly damage the country’s international image, the paper reported. China welcomes Saudi Arabia’s multibillion-dollar investment in Pakistan“We view BRI as a ‘made by China, for China’ initiative,” the report quoted Garrett Marquis, White House National Security Council Spokesperson, as saying. The Belt and Road initiative, championed by President Xi, aims to link China by sea and land with southeast and central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, through an infrastructure network on the lines of the old Silk Road. Earlier, China launched cross-border partnerships with several international, non-governmental and civic organisations to create three “green economic belts” in the countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), including Pakistan.

Source: The Express Tribune March 06, 2019 15:11 UTC