China Keywords

Talent management is key to effectively implementing the Belt and Road Initiative. At the Silk Road Forum in Warsaw on June 20, 2016, President Xi Jinping emphasized the unique role talent development can play in leading the way in this regard. It is important, he pointed out, to promote research on courses of action and means to achieve the goals of the initiative, so as to inform decision-making with regard to strategic planning and alignment, policy coordination, and the design of mechanisms. Also crucial is effective dissemination of information about the guiding principles of the initiative and interpretation of policies so as to better reach out to the people.

Addressing the Legislative Chamber of the Uzbek Supreme Assembly on June 22, 2016, Xi proposed the establishment of a technical cooperation alliance under the Belt and Road Initiative to facilitate personnel training and capacity building.

Any new progress in implementing the initiative will, to be sure, be accompanied by new challenges. Overcoming these challenges requires brainpower and expertise. It is therefore vital for countries to learn from each other and join hands in finding solutions. The objective of a Silk Road of innovation is to enhance talent development and exchange of expertise in response to any shortfall of skilled personnel in countries along the proposed Belt and Road.

Serious terrorist, secessionist and extremist threats lurk along the Belt and Road, especially along the Belt. There is also tension between some of the countries along the routes, giving rise to occasional localized conflicts. Furthermore, a number of countries are subject to internal instability. For the Belt and Road plan to proceed, it is crucial to defuse turmoil and maintain peace and stability at the regional level.

In his speech to the Legislative Chamber of the Uzbek Supreme Assembly on June 22, 2016, President Xi Jinping called for enhanced security cooperation. It is critical, he said, to promote a new Asian security concept that emphasizes joint and comprehensive measures and cooperation in ensuring sustainable security, and to create a security governance framework with Asian characteristics – in sum, to jointly build a Silk Road of peace.

A Silk Road of peace rests on two mutually complementary pillars: an environment of relative stability, which is indispensable for the Belt and Road Initiative to thrive; and concerted efforts to build the trade network, which contributes to regional peace and stability. China believes that development promotes peace and security, a conviction that has been borne out by experience.