BRI:s dödsfälla - Hotet mot Politisk och Ekonomisk Självständighet i Kenya och Sri Lanka

Sammanfattning: This study examines the economic and political impact of China's Belt and Road Initiative on Sri Lanka and Kenya with the intention of discussing its implications for the states’ independence and political sovereignty. By applying a realistic international political economy (IPE) with particular emphasis on Robert Gilpin's approach within realist IPE, the study considers connections between economic growth, political sovereignty and strategic engagement within the international arena. By analyzing China's political and economic influence on Kenya and Sri Lanka, the study highlights a nuanced and complex interplay of power and influence, which is often overlooked by the traditional Eurocentric theoretical frameworks that tend to be primarily state-centric. While the study demonstrates that the BRI represents a positive economic opportunity for participating countries, it also presents the immediate risks that the BRI poses to the countries' political sovereignty and economic independence. The study demonstrates that Kenya and Sri Lanka's participation in the BRI has resulted in an economic position of dependence on China, which has translated into political influence in the countries. The study thus intends to contribute to the broader discussion of the BRI's impact on geopolitical conditions through observable examples from Kenya and Sri Lanka.