China's Belt and Road Initiative has brought new opportunities and possibilities to participating countries, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on March 7.

Spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a routine news briefing when asked for comments on a report by Washington-based Center for Global Development, which said China's Belt and Road Initiative could increase debt risks for countries like Pakistan, Montenegro and Djibouti.

"Plenty of the initiative's participants are developing countries, which have great demands in infrastructure construction," Geng said, adding that the initiative has created new opportunities for those countries to improve the wellbeing of their people and develop their economies.

"The Belt and Road Initiative has become the largest global cooperation platform and the most popular global public good. How could it achieve such great progress if there is as high a risk as some say?" Geng said.

He added that China always follows market rules and international practices and attaches great importance to debt sustainability when promoting international cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.

(Xinhua News Agency March 7, 2018)