Associated Press reported on March 16, that the U.S. Deputy Ambassador Jonathan Cohen told the UN Security Council after the vote that "China held the resolution hostage and insisted on making it about Chinese national political priorities rather than the people of Afghanistan." He said the Trump administration opposed China's demand "that the resolution highlight its belt and road initiative, despite its tenuous ties to Afghanistan and known problems with corruption, debt distress, environmental damage, and lack of transparency." The reference to the BRI was finally not included in this years resolution. China's Deputy Ambassador Wu Haitao countered that Cohen's remarks were "at variance with the facts and are fraught with prejudice." He said the U.S -- without naming it -- had "poisoned the atmosphere". Wu Haitao added that since the "belt and road" initiative was launched six years ago, 123 countries and 29 international organizations have signed agreements of cooperation with China on joint development programs. He emphasised "The 'belt and road' initiative is conducive to Afghanistan's reconstruction and economic development. Under this framework, China and Afghanistan will continue to strengthen cooperation in various fields, promote economic and social development in the country and the integration of Afghanistan into regional development." He highlighted that the program "has nothing to do with geopolitics."
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