Laos-China railway to launch as debt to Beijing mounts

By JOE McDONALD, SAM McNEIL and ELAINE KURTENBACH
Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — Laos, an isolated, mountainous nation of 7 million people wedged between China, Vietnam and Thailand, is opening a $5.9 billion railway its leaders hope will energize its economy, but it may pile on dangerously high debt. The 1,035-kilometer (642-mile) line to China’s southwest is one of hundreds of projects under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative to expand trade by building ports, railways and other facilities across an arc of countries from the South Pacific through Asia to Europe and Africa. It is one link in a rail network that might eventually connect China with Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia and Singapore. But it’s unclear if it will be financially sustainable.