The long-standing debate about Chinese neocolonialism has been reborn as a result of China’s massive Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Chinese multinational companies (MNCs) taking over Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port and leasing a huge plot of land in Colombo Port. Adding fuel to the fire, the contemporary features of China’s relations with many developing countries bears general resemblance to those of the Europeans in the 19th and 20th centuries.