Countermeasure or complement?

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: As a business leader, what is your response to the G-7's Build Back Better World (B3W) plan to rival China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)?

Victor Mills Chief Executive Singapore International Chamber of Commerce

It is very late to the table. There is no funding model and the European Union (EU) will be lukewarm at best because of economic ties with China. But the very basis for the initiative worries me much more. It smacks of attempting to gang up against China because China is not a Western style democracy and is eclipsing the G-7 in economic power. The G-7 needs to accept alternative political systems and economic reality. It needs to demonstrate leadership by avoiding counterproductive combativeness and, instead, seek collaboration with China where possible, compete under reformed World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and agree to disagree where necessary.