BLUF
China’s overseas port investments are less a coordinated strategic master plan and more a patchwork shaped by rivalries, commercial interests, and host-nation agency; limiting Beijing’s direct control and complicating assumptions about its naval power projection.Learning Outcomes:
- Analyse the fragmented nature of China’s Belt and Road port investments and the influence of competing state-owned enterprises, provincial actors, and commercial incentives.
- Evaluate how host nations exert sovereignty and regulatory control to shape, limit, or leverage Chinese port projects.
- Assess the implications of decentralised implementation for Australia and allied policy responses to perceived Chinese maritime security threats.
