The proof of the pudding
Kathmandu Post
Nepal, July 12 -- China on Thursday established the China-South Asian Countries Poverty Alleviation and Cooperative Development Centre at a programme organised to commemorate the centenary of the establishment of the Chinese Communist Party in the presence of the ambassadors of five South Asian countries-Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The Centre's stated aim is to focus on humanitarian projects as China is increasingly keen to expand its soft power in its neighbourhood. As South Asian countries struggle to come out of poverty, the Chinese initiative to support them sounds pretty reasonable. But there are several caveats.