As part of its Belt and Road Initiative, China has provided Laos with billions of dollars in loans to develop energy infrastructure and high-speed rail lines in the hopes of bolstering long-term economic growth.

China-funded hydroelectric dams on the Mekong River, and other energy infrastructure, aimed to make Laos the "battery" of Southeast Asia. However, both China-funded projects have yet to see the economic returns Laos had hoped for.

And recent economic data show Laos is facing a mountain of debt, with $13.8 billion in total public and publicly guaranteed debt at the end of 2023, which is over 100% of the tiny country's GDP.

Loans from China, Laos' biggest creditor, amounted to half of Laos' $10.5 billion foreign debt, according to data published in Bloomberg.

Zachary Abuza, a professor at the National War College in Washington who focuses on Southeast Asia, says Laos has a major debt problem.

"It's not just debt to China. Laos has a crushing amount of debt. Debt in itself is not bad if it is going to productive uses, but Lao debt has not.........

© Deutsche Welle