Being the second largest economy in the world, China is considered a developing country by international bodies such as the United Nations and receives certain privileges.
The United States House of Representatives unanimously approved this Monday, with 415 votes in favor and 0 against, the bill to strip China of the status of a developing country.
The bipartisan initiative titled ‘The People’s Republic of China is not a developing country’ seeks to stop “labeling or treating” the Asian country as a developing nation in any treaty, international agreement or organization of which the US is a member part.
It also states that Washington will seek China to be labeled “as a country upper middle incomea country high income either a developed country“.
Being the second largest economy in the worldbehind the US, China is still considered a developing country by international bodies such as the United Nations and receives certain privileges or special flexibilities that this status grants it.
“The size of its economy is second only to that of the US, which is treated as a developed or high-income country in treaties and international organizations,” said Rep. Young Kim, a Republican from California’s 40th District.
The congresswoman accused Beijing of “cheating the system” by using said status. “[China] apply for development assistance and loans of international organizations despite spending trillions on infrastructure projects in developing countries as part of the tricky debt diplomacy scheme known as the Belt and Road initiative,” Kim argued.
“In fact, the withdrawal of loans by the PRC subtracts funds from real developing countries and finances the Belt and Road program,” he said.
For its part, Beijing does not appear to be in a rush to change that status. Last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed that the Asian nation “has always been a member of the great family of developing countries.”
Source: RT
