Chinese Ambassador in Dhaka Li Jiming on Thursday said that Bangladesh-China relations have seen rapid and sound development.
He, however, said, “I should admit that there are still some misunderstandings on China-related issues, originating from cultural difference, cognitive bias or fake news.”
The envoy said these will inevitably undermine the friendly base of China-Bangladesh relations and further hinder the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, reports UNB.
He said there is no so-called “Chinese debt trap” and the government of Bangladesh knows this well.
The envoy referred to Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen who said many times that “there’s no scope that Bangladesh will fall into the Chinese debt trap. We cut our coats according to our clothes.”
Li Jiming said, according to the data published by the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh, the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio is 38 per cent, as of June 2021, and external debt accounts for 37 per cent of the overall debt portfolio.
“Among others, debt to China accounts for only 7 per cent of Bangladesh’s external debt, as many as 2.58 per cent of the overall debt and 0.98 per cent of GDP,” he said.
The envoy said the data says that Bangladesh’s debt to China falls way below any fiscal threshold of a “debt trap”.
Bd-pratidin English/Golam Rosul
