The Great Belt Road. There are some good articles on it in reddit.com/r/geopolitics. But basically, China is willing to put up loans to build trade infrastructure, in the sorts of places where it would be too risky for private capital to do so (dictatorships, failing states, etc). They then make two (but only 2) demands: We want to be the ones to build it, and 2) If you default on payment for it, we'll lease it from you from that point on.

Unstable countries see those two demands as far simpler than WTO / UN type development, which also tends to come with things like human rights requirements.

And if they can't repay the loan, China will pay THEM to lease it out? Seems like a win-win.

Fast forward a few years, and China has helped prop up their internal construction companies, by giving them state sponsored projects on foreign soil.

And when the countries ultimately fail to repay the loan, China acquires territory over important infrastructure in foreign countries, not unlike how the US has military bases worldwide.