New Delhi, Nov 6: In what could be yet another blow for China's $1 trillion "project of the century", Philippines has become the latest country to exit the ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

 

 

This comes just days after Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted leaders of 23 countries for the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing in an effort to breathe fresh life into the ambitious infrastructure plan which has slowed down considerably in the last few years.

 

The full termination of major infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative has been announced by the Philippine Department of Transportation in favour of competitors from the West and Japan.

 

As per the Philippine Senate, doubt now shrouds nearly all of China's crucial investment initiatives in the Philippines, owing to economic and political factors. This has led to a new low point in Philippine-China relations, marking a drastic reversal from the six years of warm engagement during the pro-Beijing Rodrigo Duterte presidency.

 

The country is now looking at alternative and more favourable deals from traditional investment partners like Japan, South Korea, US and the European Union.

 

 

The development poses another challenge to President Xi as he tries to convince the world to bet on the massive infrastructure project, which is dubbed as his "brainchild". Just a few weeks ago, Italy, the only G7 country that was part of BRI, said it would withdraw its participation by the end of this year since the project failed to meet its expectations.

 

According to a Bloomberg report, the overall BRI activity has come down by a massive 40% from its 2018 peak due to economic crisis in China and debt woes of the participating nations.