Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI

[Black_cats]

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI​

The Bangladesh foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June​

Press Trust of IndiaJune 19, 2022 23:23:57 IST

The Padma Bridge in Dhaka. Wikimedia Commons/ Nahian Bin Shafiq

Dhaka: Bangladesh on Sunday rejected reports over links between a newly-built road bridge and China's multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, saying the country's longest bridge was entirely financed by the government and no foreign funds were used in its construction.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate on 25 June the nearly 10-kilomtre-long Padma Bridge, a structure that would connect by road Bangladesh's southwestern region with the capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.

"It (the bridge) is not related to the BRI and Bangladesh has not taken any foreign fund for building the structure either, a foreign ministry spokesman said.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a multi-billion-dollar project launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he came to power in 2013. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea routes.

The foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June.

Hours after the group distributed invitation letters to the media, the foreign ministry issued a statement refuting the bridge's connection with the BRI, prompting the organisers to postpone their planned discussion the next day.

The group had said leaders representing different Bangladeshi political parties, including the ruling Awami League, and China's envoy in Dhaka, and other officials will take part in the event.

"It has come to the attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that some quarters are trying to portray that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge has been constructed with the assistance of foreign funds and is a part of the Belt and Road Initiative, said the foreign office statement.

The statement asserted that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge was entirely funded by the Bangladesh government and no foreign funds from any other bilateral or multilateral funding agency contributed to its construction.

It, however, said both foreign as well as Bangladeshi construction firms were engaged in the implementation of the project and the completion of the bridge would "fulfill the long-cherished dream of the nation of connecting the 19 south-western districts with the rest of the country.

The foreign office said the bridge would pave a way for collective prosperity, socioeconomic development of Bangladesh as well as enhanced regional connectivity.

A Chinese embassy spokesman, meanwhile, told a select group of journalists in Dhaka that the bridge was built entirely with Bangladeshi funds, adding that: We are proud that a Chinese construction company was involved in building the Padma Bridge.

The (China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Corporation) company which had built a bridge on our mother river (Yellow River) decades ago has built the first longest such bridge (over the Padma) outside China, he said.

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI

The Bangladesh foreign ministry’s reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum’ last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June

www.firstpost.com

 

[bluesky]

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI​

The Bangladesh foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June​

Press Trust of IndiaJune 19, 2022 23:23:57 IST

The Padma Bridge in Dhaka. Wikimedia Commons/ Nahian Bin Shafiq

Dhaka: Bangladesh on Sunday rejected reports over links between a newly-built road bridge and China's multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, saying the country's longest bridge was entirely financed by the government and no foreign funds were used in its construction.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate on 25 June the nearly 10-kilomtre-long Padma Bridge, a structure that would connect by road Bangladesh's southwestern region with the capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.

"It (the bridge) is not related to the BRI and Bangladesh has not taken any foreign fund for building the structure either, a foreign ministry spokesman said.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a multi-billion-dollar project launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he came to power in 2013. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea routes.

The foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June.

Hours after the group distributed invitation letters to the media, the foreign ministry issued a statement refuting the bridge's connection with the BRI, prompting the organisers to postpone their planned discussion the next day.

The group had said leaders representing different Bangladeshi political parties, including the ruling Awami League, and China's envoy in Dhaka, and other officials will take part in the event.

"It has come to the attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that some quarters are trying to portray that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge has been constructed with the assistance of foreign funds and is a part of the Belt and Road Initiative, said the foreign office statement.

The statement asserted that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge was entirely funded by the Bangladesh government and no foreign funds from any other bilateral or multilateral funding agency contributed to its construction.

It, however, said both foreign as well as Bangladeshi construction firms were engaged in the implementation of the project and the completion of the bridge would "fulfill the long-cherished dream of the nation of connecting the 19 south-western districts with the rest of the country.

The foreign office said the bridge would pave a way for collective prosperity, socioeconomic development of Bangladesh as well as enhanced regional connectivity.

A Chinese embassy spokesman, meanwhile, told a select group of journalists in Dhaka that the bridge was built entirely with Bangladeshi funds, adding that: We are proud that a Chinese construction company was involved in building the Padma Bridge.

The (China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Corporation) company which had built a bridge on our mother river (Yellow River) decades ago has built the first longest such bridge (over the Padma) outside China, he said.

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI

The Bangladesh foreign ministry’s reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum’ last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June

www.firstpost.com

বৃক্ষ তার ফলে পরিচয়। A tree is named after its fruits. Whatever way the GoB loves to portray Padma Bridge, with its roads and railways, it will certainly become part of the BRI. One Belt One Road.

The 1st link will be between BD and MM, and the 2nd is MM-China. So, gradually, these links will separately form one great China Dragon link of BRI even if India wants not to join it.

Note also that China is aiming for the takeover of the administration of Mongla Port. It becomes also a part of BRI. I wonder, what India can do to check Indian incursion into BD with the direct help of BAL party govt.

 

[Bengal71]

বৃক্ষ তার ফলে পরিচয়। A tree is named after its fruits. Whatever way the GoB loves to portray Padma Bridge, with its roads and railways, it will certainly become part of the BRI. One Belt One Road.

The 1st link will be between BD and MM, and the 2nd is MM-China. So, gradually, these links will separately form one great China Dragon link of BRI even if India wants not to join it.

Note also that China is aiming for the takeover of the administration of Mongla Port. It becomes also a part of BRI. I wonder, what India can do to check Indian incursion into BD with the direct help of BAL party govt.

Padma bridge link Dhaka to the south eastern part of Bangladesh. I fail to understand how it can connect BD to MM.

 

[bluesky]

Padma bridge link Dhaka to the south eastern part of Bangladesh. I fail to understand how it can connect BD to MM.

Is it a big problem to connect BD and China via MM? It can be done both by a rail line connection and a road connection. However, it takes time to do such things.

Any country has its long-term goals. Chinese BRI is not a one-day project. However, I believe, the connection will be a railway one that will connect Mongla - Padma railway Bridge - improved rail tracks to Chittagong and via the under-construction rail line to Gundam - MM railways - Kunming in the Chinese south.

This BRI rail line length will not even be 1,000 km. This will allow also BD to trade with the SE Asian countries as well.

 

[etylo]

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI​

The Bangladesh foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June​

Press Trust of IndiaJune 19, 2022 23:23:57 IST

The Padma Bridge in Dhaka. Wikimedia Commons/ Nahian Bin Shafiq

Dhaka: Bangladesh on Sunday rejected reports over links between a newly-built road bridge and China's multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, saying the country's longest bridge was entirely financed by the government and no foreign funds were used in its construction.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate on 25 June the nearly 10-kilomtre-long Padma Bridge, a structure that would connect by road Bangladesh's southwestern region with the capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.

"It (the bridge) is not related to the BRI and Bangladesh has not taken any foreign fund for building the structure either, a foreign ministry spokesman said.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a multi-billion-dollar project launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he came to power in 2013. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea routes.

The foreign ministry's reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum' last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June.

Hours after the group distributed invitation letters to the media, the foreign ministry issued a statement refuting the bridge's connection with the BRI, prompting the organisers to postpone their planned discussion the next day.

The group had said leaders representing different Bangladeshi political parties, including the ruling Awami League, and China's envoy in Dhaka, and other officials will take part in the event.

"It has come to the attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that some quarters are trying to portray that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge has been constructed with the assistance of foreign funds and is a part of the Belt and Road Initiative, said the foreign office statement.

The statement asserted that the Padma Multipurpose Bridge was entirely funded by the Bangladesh government and no foreign funds from any other bilateral or multilateral funding agency contributed to its construction.

It, however, said both foreign as well as Bangladeshi construction firms were engaged in the implementation of the project and the completion of the bridge would "fulfill the long-cherished dream of the nation of connecting the 19 south-western districts with the rest of the country.

The foreign office said the bridge would pave a way for collective prosperity, socioeconomic development of Bangladesh as well as enhanced regional connectivity.

A Chinese embassy spokesman, meanwhile, told a select group of journalists in Dhaka that the bridge was built entirely with Bangladeshi funds, adding that: We are proud that a Chinese construction company was involved in building the Padma Bridge.

The (China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Corporation) company which had built a bridge on our mother river (Yellow River) decades ago has built the first longest such bridge (over the Padma) outside China, he said.

Bangladesh dismisses reports linking construction of Padma Bridge with China's BRI

The Bangladesh foreign ministry’s reaction came after a group called Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum’ last week announced it would hold a panel discussion on The Padma Bridge: An Example of Bangladesh-China Cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative on 22 June

www.firstpost.com

So, what's your fuss, the bridge is being built by a Chinese company in conjuction with Bangladesh after all.

 

[mb444]

So, what's your fuss, the bridge is being built by a Chinese company in conjuction with Bangladesh after all.

The fuss is that BD self funded the bridge 100 percent and no money came from china. However chinese company built it on a contract alongside BD infrastructure companies. Strictly it is not part of BRI but ofcourse in time it may become part of it but it was a BD endeavour that is not even tangentially part of BRI currently.

 

[etylo]

The fuss is that BD self funded the bridge 100 percent and no money came from china. However chinese company built it on a contract alongside BD infrastructure companies. Strictly it is not part of BRI but ofcourse in time it may become part of it but it was a BD endeavour that is not even tangentially part of BRI currently.

I read an article, it's only the Chinese tech that enabled it to build such bridge across such difficult water. All the European companies shun away from such construction.

 

[mb444]

I read an article, it's only the Chinese tech that enabled it to build such bridge across such difficult water. All the European companies shun away from such construction.

If it was not the chinese it would have been someone else.... but no one is arguing about chinese tech...

The point was it has nothing whatsoever to do with BRI.

 

[etylo]

If it was not the chinese it would have been someone else.... but no one is arguing about chinese tech...

The point was it has nothing whatsoever to do with BRI.

European companies chickened out...

 

[mb444]

European companies chickened out...

That was not remotely true.

 

[etylo]

That was not remotely true.

That's what I read in an article.,

 

[Bilal9]

That's what I read in an article.,

Please post a link to the article. Or the article itself. All kinds of BS are floating around on the Internet people claim these days.

The main hammer for the bridge footers' pilings was custom fabricated in Germany by Menck, whose expertise in this area is state-of-the-art. It remains to this day, the largest piling hammer Menck EVER FABRICATED.

There were other subcontractors involved in the design and construction of the bridge (some from Western countries too). The designer of the bridge was AECOM headquartered in Dallas.

Padma Bridge - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Hammer was transported to Bangladesh via AN-124 Volga-Dnepr Air Cargo Transport. AN-124 and AN-225's were (and still are) frequent visitors to Bangladesh. Sad that one AN-225 was destroyed in Ukraine early in the current conflict.

Chinese MBEC was chosen to fabricate the bridge because of,

a) their reputation in their home country

b) their reasonable cost, and of course

c) some politics, where Chinese govt. ensured speedy completion of the project, since MBEC I believe is a govt. organization in China

 

[etylo]

Please post a link to the article. Or the article itself. All kinds of BS are floating around on the Internet people claim these days.

The main hammer for the bridge footers' pilings was custom fabricated in Germany by Menck, whose expertise in this area is state-of-the-art. It remains to this day, the largest piling hammer Menck EVER FABRICATED.

There were other subcontractors involved in the design and construction of the bridge (some from Western countries too). The designer of the bridge was AECOM headquartered in Dallas.

Padma Bridge - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Hammer was transported to Bangladesh via AN-124 Volga-Dnepr Air Cargo Transport. AN-124 and AN-225's were (and still are) frequent visitors to Bangladesh. Sad that one AN-225 was destroyed in Ukraine early in the current conflict.

Chinese MBEC was chosen to fabricate the bridge because of,

a) their reputation in their home country

b) their reasonable cost, and of course

c) some politics, where Chinese govt. ensured speedy completion of the project, since MBEC I believe is a govt. organization in China

You can use google translate on the articles：

让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，架起梦想之桥

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国…

zhuanlan.zhihu.com

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www.sohu.com

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国家在实地考察过帕德玛大桥的地质环境后，纷纷知难而退，即使300亿的经费诱惑力再大也绝不回头。然而面对让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，也为孟加拉国架起梦想之桥。

Translate of the above quoted first paragraph in the first article:

The successful completion of the Padma Bridge built by China in Bangladesh has once again refreshed the industry's perception of China's infrastructure capabilities. Before that, many countries had the idea of building the Padma Bridge for Bangladesh. Bangladesh also spent 30 billion yuan for the construction of this bridge, but these countries have visited Padma on the spot. After the geological environment of the bridge, they all retreated, even if the temptation of 30 billion funds is great, they will never look back. However, in the face of the Padma Bridge, which made many countries retreat in spite of difficulties, China gave full marks and built a bridge of dreams for Bangladesh.

 

[Bilal9]

You can use google translate on the article

让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，架起梦想之桥

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国…

zhuanlan.zhihu.com

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国家在实地考察过帕德玛大桥的地质环境后，纷纷知难而退，即使300亿的经费诱惑力再大也绝不回头。然而面对让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，也为孟加拉国架起梦想之桥。

Translate of the above paragraph:

The successful completion of the Padma Bridge built by China in Bangladesh has once again refreshed the industry's perception of China's infrastructure capabilities. Before that, many countries had the idea of building the Padma Bridge for Bangladesh. Bangladesh also spent 30 billion yuan for the construction of this bridge, but these countries have visited Padma on the spot. After the geological environment of the bridge, they all retreated, even if the temptation of 30 billion funds is great, they will never look back. However, in the face of the Padma Bridge, which made many countries retreat in spite of difficulties, China gave full marks and built a bridge of dreams for Bangladesh.

Well AECOM designed the bridge and there must have been more than one party who were ready to proceed with the construction, but Bangladesh Bridge Authority chose MBEC.

I think the article is choosing to pat Chinese govt. and MBEC in the back. A bit of self congratulation which we are OK with, in Bangladesh. I don't think any other company besides MBEC could have built the bridge with this quality and this budget, this fast.

 

[Bengal71]

You can use google translate on the articles：

让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，架起梦想之桥

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国…

zhuanlan.zhihu.com

äºä¸èµ·çä¸å½å¶é ï¼åå æå¸å¾·ç大桥âä¸ä¼æµ·å¤æ¿æ¥æ大åä½æ¡¥æ¢è¶çº§å·¥ç¨

å¸å¾·ç大桥主桥é¿6.15å¬éï¼å®½18.10ç±³ï¼å¼éé¿12.117å¬éï¼ä¸ºåå±å¬é两ç¨é¢æ¡æ¢å¤§æ¡¥ï¼ä¸å±ä¸ºååå车éå¬è·¯ãä¸å±ä¸ºå线éè·¯ï¼ä¸é¨ç»æç±41å跨度为150ç±³çé¢æ¡æ¢ç»æï¼ååé约3200å¨å·¦å³ï¼å¨æ¡¥æ»é约13ä¸å¨ã

www.sohu.com

中国在孟加拉国修建的帕德玛大桥顺利完工，再次刷新了业界内对中国基建能力的认知。在此之前，曾有很多国家有替孟加拉国建设帕德玛大桥的想法，孟加拉国对于这座桥梁的建设，也豪掷出了300亿的天价经费，但这些国家在实地考察过帕德玛大桥的地质环境后，纷纷知难而退，即使300亿的经费诱惑力再大也绝不回头。然而面对让众多国家知难而退的帕德玛大桥，中国交满分答卷，也为孟加拉国架起梦想之桥。

Translate of the above quoted paragraph:

The successful completion of the Padma Bridge built by China in Bangladesh has once again refreshed the industry's perception of China's infrastructure capabilities. Before that, many countries had the idea of building the Padma Bridge for Bangladesh. Bangladesh also spent 30 billion yuan for the construction of this bridge, but these countries have visited Padma on the spot. After the geological environment of the bridge, they all retreated, even if the temptation of 30 billion funds is great, they will never look back. However, in the face of the Padma Bridge, which made many countries retreat in spite of difficulties, China gave full marks and built a bridge of dreams for Bangladesh.

Highly unlikely the Europeans, Japanese or North American engineers chickened out because of the engineering challege, they are master engineers. But that doesn't mean the Chinese not master engineers either. Now it's in the past, we are just happy that the bridge has been built.