Nicaragua Canal Plan Not a Joke

After denying connection to Chinese authorities or the Communist Party, Wang Jing is promising transparency in a $40 billion dollar project to build the Nicaragua canal. The only public face of the project, Wang is offering few details about himself. At a news conference in Beijing, he mentioned not wanting the Nicaragua canal to become “an international joke” or an example of “Chinese investment failures.” While the canal was approved by Nicaraguan authorities in June 2013, the opposition claimed that the country has seen little in the way of promised investment funds. Despite the skepticism of industry experts and criticism from environmentalists, Wang has maintained, according to this BBC News report, that his consortium would operate “fairly, impartially and openly.” The project would rely on Lake Nicaragua, the largest freshwater lake in Central America to connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The proposed canal, three times longer than the Panama Canal, would offer an alternative connection between the two oceans. – YaleGlobal