Are the wheels coming off China’s Belt and Road megaproject?

In a statement Friday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed as “not true” numerous reports that a key port in Mombasa was at risk of being seized by Beijing over unpaid debts.

Speaking to journalists last week, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta also pushed back, dismissing as “pure propaganda” reports based on a leaked letter from the country’s Auditor General warning that assets belonging to the Kenya Port Authority — including Mombasa’s massive Kilindini Harbor, the largest port in East Africa — were listed as collateral for a multi-billion-dollar loan to fund a railway project.