“China’s Belt and Road initiative”
IMO, Once this transportation link is completed and operational China will use it as a reason to intervene in any country in between should instability threaten trade.
I can agree to that.....and they do have a way of ‘pushing’ those out of the way by oppression etc when they don’t want to deal with them, as we see happening in Western China. They use populations like we see Islam does via migration and otherwise.
Trade routes generally always ‘lock in’ nations...one way or another. Same with oil lines that ‘hardwire’ nations to one another.