Enter the Dragon: China’s Belt and Road Rising in the Middle East

Cairenes are not modest about their beloved city. It is Umm al-Dunya, they say, the mother of the world. They also call it simply Masr, the Arabic term for Egypt, suggesting, of course, that there is really nothing worth noting in the vast country beyond their grand city on the Nile.

Fifty miles east of Cairo, a Chinese construction firm is giving the aged, crowded, increasingly decaying “mother of the world” a face-lift of sorts. China State Construction and Engineering Company (CSCEC) has broken ground on a new business and administrative district to the tune of $3 billion, mostly financed by Chinese banks. When completed by late 2019, according to projections, much of Egypt’s government will move to this new “capital.”

China and India look to strengthen relationship

The two nations pledge to work together in hosting upcoming G20 and BRICS summits, and to cooperate more on economic and security matters

China and India vowed to enhance their bilateral ties and to cooperate in hosting the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) summit in Hangzhou as well as another meeting between emerging-market nations.

The pledge was made at a meeting between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Saturday.

“One Belt, One Road” May Be China’s ‘One Chance’ To Save Collapsing Economy

In April, Chinese President Xi Jinping marked a historic visit to neighboring Pakistan. China, via Beijing’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative, will invest some $50 billion in Pakistani infrastructure, including power plants, roads, railways, and, perhaps most importantly, the Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline. The vast sum represents 53% more than the US has given Islamabad over the past 13 years combined. China is also set to invest an equally large sum in Brazil and is even considering the construction a railroad over the Andes, which would connect Brazil to China via the Pacific and ports in Peru.

California’s Central Valley Sinking Faster Than Ever Before As Farmers Drill For Water During Drought

FRESNO (CBS SF) — California’s Central Valley is sinking at a rate never before seen during the state’s historic drought, and farmers are shouldering some  of the blame for the damage that sinking is causing.

Steve Arthur of Arthur & Orum Well Drilling is drilling wells as fast as his rigs will let him.

“It’s unbelievable.  We can’t keep up with the demand,” Arthur told KPIX 5.

China Looking to Secure Access to Africa Via Mega Infrastructure Projects

Rulers in Africa are either very desperate, ruthless or very blind to what China has created on their continent. Either way, China is swiping away any resource opportunities away in the continent from the United States.

 

MOSCOW, February 2 (Sputnik) — The African Union and China have recently agreed to on an ambitious transport infrastructure blueprint, aiming to link the capitals of all 54 states of the African continent via motorways, rail and air links. Promoting the development of a mature system of transport infrastructure in Africa will be extremely beneficial to China, guaranteeing it access to natural resources and markets on the continent, Chatham House Asia Program Associate Fellow James Edward Hoare told Sputnik on Monday.