Sri Lanka’s debt + Japan’s pacifism

The situation in Sri Lanka is dramatic. The country is suffering the deepest economic crisis in its history. Unemployment and rising prices are driving people onto the streets, while a huge mountain of debt is crushing the national budget. On the weekend, insurgents even stormed the President’s palace.

But who is to blame for this state of affairs? Many point to China. In their opinion, it is a prime example of China’s alleged debt trap. Frank Sieren has taken a closer look at the complicated mix of loan agreements, fixed interest rates, and feasibility studies for the port project and comes to the conclusion that it was not China’s alleged debt trap that snapped shut in Sri Lanka. Instead, the reasons can also be found in Europe and the USA.

In our second analysis today, we look at Japan. There, the former party of assassinated Ex-Prime Minister Shinzō Abe won the election to the upper house of parliament on the weekend. Now, unexpectedly, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and their coalition partners have an opportunity to implement a decades-old concern: Japan’s conservatives could finally amend the pacifist constitution. For China, that would probably be an unacceptable act. Finn Mayer-Kuckuk has analyzed the new post-election situation. He shows why Japan’s incumbent Prime Minister Kishida is unlikely to seek a constitutional amendment after all, despite his election victory.

Your
Michael Radunski