Live data from Hacker News

What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

nytimes.com

21–30 of 149 posts

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#21

"Over all, around 90 percent of the country’s revenues goes to servicing debt. Even a new president who took office in 2015 on a promise to curb Chinese influence succumbed to financial reality." 90% of Sri Lanka's revenues goes to servicing Chinese debt? I find this hard to believe. Any references?

It's a problem only if it's denominated in foreign currency.likely

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#22
post #7

As the United States beats a haphazard retreat from the world — nixing trade agreements, eschewing diplomacy, antagonizing allies — China marches on with its unabashedly ambitious global-expansion program known as One Belt, One Road. This constant MSM need to connect everything on earth back to Trump is getting so fucking tedious. Construction of the airport this article concerns was finished (edit: begun) in 2009. I…

Eschewing diplomacy and antagonizing allies started with Bush after 9/11 and the build up for the Iraq war.

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#23
Reading the article, I think what I realize is that us readers how no real sway over either side. If Sri Lanka didnt want an airport, they didnt have to get it and China didnt need to provide an airport.

Before there was real customers coming in, this was likely just a very good deal or a new product launch with no demand, I think the writer is oversimplifying the situation a bit. There are more reasons than maybe economic neocolonialism.

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#24
post #11

I assume another close contender is the Nay Pyi Taw airport in Myanmar. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXvqis0htxH/?taken-at=277450644 https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/277450644/naypyi... The city was built as a showcase capital for Myanmar's military government, and has crazy sights like a 20 lane highway (with almost no cars): https://www.go-myanmar.com/sites/go-myanmar.com/files/upload... More pictures: ht…

> the female side of the seat belt buckle The what? Are rides segregated or is there some kind of female buckle I have not heard of?

[deleted]

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#25

I assume another close contender is the Nay Pyi Taw airport in Myanmar. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXvqis0htxH/?taken-at=277450644 https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/277450644/naypyi... The city was built as a showcase capital for Myanmar's military government, and has crazy sights like a 20 lane highway (with almost no cars): https://www.go-myanmar.com/sites/go-myanmar.com/files/upload... More pictures: ht…

Mirabel airport [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montr%C3%A9al%E2%80%93Mirabel_...] probably was a contender. The passenger terminals were eventually torn down recently, but cargo flights continue to use it.

EDIT: "By surface area, it was the largest airport in the world that had ever been envisioned, with a planned area of 39,660 hectares (396.6 km2; 98,000 acres)"

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#26
post #17
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the female side of the seat belt buckle The what? Are rides segregated or is there some kind of female buckle I have not heard of?

The phrase refers to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_of_connectors_and_faste...

Thanks. I've heard of pipes being referred to that way, but not buckles.

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#27
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the female side of the seat belt buckle The what? Are rides segregated or is there some kind of female buckle I have not heard of?

most buckles have a male and female part. It's a common term to describe parts of things that fit into each other. Used in plumbing, electrical and many other industries.

Just don't make a joke about it at a developer conference.

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#28
post #10

A number of Chinese businesses are setting up 100%-Chinese factory compounds overseas. These compounds are located in a foreign country, but they are fully financed by Chinese, built by Chinese, employ only Chinese, have accommodation for the Chinese employees, have a completely sustaining internal economy where employees can buy food and entertainment and send mail, posts, banking, remittance, insurance, through Chi…

China does a similar thing with agriculture. Huge plots of land in Australia and New Zealand are controlled by Chinese farming companies and staffed by Chinese. All the food they produce goes back to China.

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#29
Pushing countries deeper into debt, even inadvertently, may give China leverage in the short run, but it risks losing the good will essential to OBOR’s long-term success. For all the big projects China is engaged in around the world — high-speed rail in Laos, a military base in Djibouti, highways in Kenya — arguably its most perilous step so far may be taking control of the foundering Hambantota port.

This is a good point to make, but sadly one that isn't being made by the US atm.

It's pretty clear what's going to happen with this airport: To relieve its debt crisis, Sri Lanka has put its white elephants up for sale. In late July, the government agreed to give China control of the deepwater port — a 70 percent equity stake over 99 years — in exchange for writing off $1.1 billion of the island’s debt

Just imagine what China will give for an Indian-ocean airbase in Sri Lanka to go with the base they have in Djibouti[1]. Sri Lanka will keep trying to play China, India and the US off against each other[2], but it's pretty clear to everyone that the "string of pearls" strategy is working well for China at the moment.

[1] https://warontherocks.com/2017/08/chinas-military-base-in-dj...

[2] https://warontherocks.com/2017/03/sri-lanka-is-not-chinas-pe...

Re: What the World’s Emptiest International Airport Says About China’s Influence

#30
post #7

As the United States beats a haphazard retreat from the world — nixing trade agreements, eschewing diplomacy, antagonizing allies — China marches on with its unabashedly ambitious global-expansion program known as One Belt, One Road. This constant MSM need to connect everything on earth back to Trump is getting so fucking tedious. Construction of the airport this article concerns was finished (edit: begun) in 2009. I…

Ask yourself why the NYT didn’t mention Trump by name. Give up? Maybe they weren’t talking about him specifically.
Post reply on HN