Beware of China's one-belt binding us to its designs

The usual suspects in Australia (economists and businesspeople) are already fulsome in their praise for Chinas so-called One Belt, One Road or Belt and Road Initiative economic mega-project. Last weekend, President Xi Jinping mounted an extensive propaganda campaign before 30 heads of state at a global summit to sell this $1 trillion economic proposition, with its emphasis on infrastructure connectivity by building ports, railways and pipelines across Asia, the Middle East and Europe.