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The Journal of Political Science

Department of Political Science, Government College University Lahore
ISSN (print): 1726-6467
ISSN (online): 2709-8672

DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS

  • Komal Malik/
  • Arsal Tanveer/
  • Ramsha Arif/
  • August 28, 2023
Keywords
China, Debt trap, BRI, Neo-Imperialism, Hambantota
Abstract

After undergoing the “Century of humiliation”, Chinese mended themselves by transforming the country from “Humiliation to Rejuvenation”. The country underwent numerous troubling times before moving onto the path of development and modernization. However, now China stands as an excellent example of a potential economic power emerged in a short course of time. Therefore, the merchandise expansion of China is now seen as its debt trap maneuvers and an extended policy of economically trespassing the countries. The research article thus analyzes the policies under which China is said to trap the developing nations from Africa and Asia with unpayable loans in exchange to their strategic assets. It seeks to answer the question of whether the debt trap diplomacy linked with China is real, if so, then how? And how China reacts to the allegations in order to falsify the narratives propagated by US and India and what myths surround this debate? This study employs a qualitative methodology to investigate the effectiveness of various policies by analyzing information gathered from reputable websites, articles in established journals, and scholarly research papers. Through thematic content analysis, this research seeks to elucidate the actual impacts of these policies and dispel any unfounded and mythical perception. Correspondingly, the researchers of this article have explored the two perspectives of the debt trap diplomacy to base their result with strong evidence of neo-imperialist policies of China. This research employs comprehensive case studies to examine Chinese debt-trapping tactics in developing countries. It notes discernible long-term implications, but limited direct evidence implicating China. The research offers a nuanced exploration of Chinese debt trap diplomacy, addressing misconceptions and advocating an impartial scholarly approach to assess these perspectives.

How to cite

Malik, K., Tanveer, A., & Arif, R. (2023). DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science, 41(1). http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page

Retrieved from http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page

More citation formats
ACM SIG Proceedings
[1]Malik, K. et al. 2023. DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science. 41, 1 (Aug. 2023).
ACS Nano
(1)Malik, K.; Tanveer, A.; Arif, R. DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science 2023, 41 (1).
ABNT
MALIK, Komal; TANVEER, Arsal; ARIF, Ramsha. DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science, v. 41, n. 1, 28 Aug.2023.
Chicago (author-date)

            

                    
Harvard (Cite Them Right)

            

                
Malik, K., Tanveer, A. and Arif, R. (2023) “DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS”, The Journal of Political Science, 41(1). Available at: http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page (Accessed: 28 June 2026).

            

                    
IEEE

            

                
[1]K. Malik, A. Tanveer, and R. Arif, “DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS”, The Journal of Political Science, vol. 41, no. 1, Aug. 2023, Accessed: June 28, 2026. [Online]. Available: http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page

            

                    
MLA

            

                
Malik, Komal, et al. “DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS”. The Journal of Political Science, vols. 41, no. 1, Aug. 2023, http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page.

            

                    
Turabian (full note bibliography)

            

                
Malik, Komal, Arsal Tanveer, and Ramsha Arif. “DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS”. The Journal of Political Science 41, no. 1 (August 28, 2023). Accessed June 28, 2026. http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page.

            

                    
Vancouver

            

                
1.Malik K, Tanveer A, Arif R. DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science [Internet]. 2023 Aug. 28 [cited 2026 June 28];41(1). Available from: http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page

            

                    
AMA

            

                
1.Malik K, Tanveer A, Arif R. DEBUNKING THE MYTH AND REALITY OF CHINESE DEBT TRAP DIPLOMACY AND CHINA’S NEW GEOPOLITICS. The Journal of Political Science. 2023;41(1). Accessed June 28, 2026. http://jps.gcu.edu.pk/website/journal/article/64ec4f11833ef/page

            

            






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Author(s):



    

        

        
            
Komal  Malik

        
        Author
    

    
Ph.D. scholar and visiting faculty at Islamic International University, Islamabad.

    
Pakistan

    
            
    
                            
  • 
                    
                    komal.phdir59@iiu.edu.pk
                
    • 
                                    
        

    
    

    

        

        
            
Arsal Tanveer

        
        Author
    

    
B.S. International Relations Graduate at National Defense University, Islamabad.

    
Pakistan

    
            
    
                            
  • 
                    
                    arsalawanmalik@gmail.com
                
    • 
                                    
        

    
    

    

        

        
            
Ramsha Arif

        
        
    

    
B.S. International Relations Graduate at National Defense University, Islamabad.

    
Pakistan

    
            
    
                            
  • 
                    
                    ramshaarif58@gmail.com
                
    • 
                                    
        

    
    


    
Details:





    

        
        

            Type:
            Article
        

        

            Volume:
            41
        

        

            Issue:
            1
        

        

            Language:
            English
        

        

            Id:
            64ec4f11833ef
        

                        

            Published
            August 28, 2023
            
        

        
    


        

        

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                            Department  of Political Science, Government College University Lahore
                        

                    
                

            

        

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