Recent years have witnessed much concern about the expanding scale of China’s influence within Laos. Almost half of Laos’ total public debt is now held by China. The Chinese state-owned company China Southern Power Grid now holds a controlling stake in Laos’ national power grid, and in December this year, the highly contentious Lao-China high-speed railway is scheduled to begin operating.
This year also marks the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and…