The Belt and Road Initiative Is Shaping a Shared 21st Century

The Belt and Road Initiative has gone from blueprint to practice, from vision to reality, becoming the world’s most popular public goods and opening up a new era of win-win cooperation. It vividly translates China’s diplomatic thinking into an important action platform, in which a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind in the 21st century can be built.

After two world wars and the Cold War in the 20th century, people have drawn lessons from the painful experience and are now yearning for peaceful development. In today’s world, peace deficit, development deficit and governance deficit are intertwined. The global governance system has undergone profound changes and the transformation of the international order has reached a new turning point. As the world’s largest developing country and a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, China’s policy choice is of great significance for the future of the 21st century.

With a view of the ongoing changes in the world, Chinese President Xi Jinping, as the chief architect of the project, took the initiative toward a new direction, in launching the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Zhang Qian’s mission to the Western Regions in 139 BC, which was hailed as an “icebreaking journey” by the well-known historian Sima Qian, provided the grand occasion where “the messengers can see each other on the road, and where traders and passengers are endless.” As the ice-breaking journey of the 21st century, the BRI has gone from blueprint to practice, from vision to reality, becoming the world’s most popular public goods and opening up a new era of win-win cooperation. The BRI vividly translates China’s diplomatic thinking on peace, development, and win-win cooperation into an important action platform, in which a new type of international relations and a community

with a shared future for mankind in the 21st century can be built.

By analyzing the great significance of the BRI in promoting the concept of a shared 21st century, this paper elaborates on the BRI’S practical experience since it was first put forward, and points out how openness and inclusiveness represent its core idea for international cooperation. Furthermore, this paper directly responds to the doubts and criticisms raised against the BRI, and underlines the need of building the BRI of high quality, high level, and high standards in the future. The BRI is itself a vibrant new opportunity, which fits the trend of globalization and makes invaluable contributions to promoting enduring world peace and shared prosperity.

Shaping a Shared 21st Century

A great transformation calls for great ideas. Even though the Cold War has been over for 30 years, the world is not yet at peace. Global issues are becoming increasingly serious, the international situation is experiencing turbulence and its uncertainties have grown significantly. “Black swans” and “grey rhinos” are overwhelming, and populism, trade protectionism, and unilateralism are cropping up here and there. It was in such a situation that China took the initiative to advocate building the BRI, which demonstrated China’s determination to adhere to the path of peaceful development and the goal of constructing a better world.

A solemn declaration of China’s path of peaceful development

Whether seen from a historical perspective or from the perspective of practical reality, jointly building the BRI is an inevitable option for China as it adheres to peaceful development, showing that China is an active contributor to world peace and development. In contrast to the rise of other countries which has historically relied on war, China is a major force in safeguarding world peace. China’s rise is based on peaceful development. President Xi has pointed out: “Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, we have grasped the development trend of China and the world in the

new era, carried out a series of major theoretical and practical innovations in the field of foreign affairs, and given rise to the new era’s socialist diplomatic thinking with Chinese characteristics, including jointly building the BRI with the principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration; taking the path of peaceful development based on the principle of mutual respect and win-win cooperation.”1 While China achieves development in a peaceful environment, China’s development also contributes to maintaining world peace. This is a solemn commitment from Chinese leaders not only to the 1.4 billion Chinese people, but also to the whole world.

The 70-year history since the founding of the People’s Republic of China shows that the path of peaceful development leads to prosperity. In foreign relations, China holds high the banner of peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefits and promotes world peace and common development. In the realm of international security, China takes the initiative to shoulder responsibility as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, and actively plays the role of moderator when it comes to pressing issues across the globe.

China firmly supports and participates in UN peacekeeping operations, and has become the country with the largest number of peacekeeping forces among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Since 2019, China has become the second largest contributor to UN dues and peacekeeping costs. In terms of global development, China combines its own interests with the interests of the international community. The joint construction of the BRI is a clear manifestation of this with the pursuit of peace and development embedded in the great undertaking of promoting development. The BRI has also promoted the relations between China and countries along its routes, helping build a community of shared responsibility and shared interests. In short, the more China develops, the more prosperous the world will be; and the stronger China becomes, the more peaceful the world will be.

A major undertaking for the benefits of people from countries along the routes

The world economy was heavily hit by the global financial crisis, featuring a prolonged downturn, lethargic growth, and increasingly unbalanced development. When China became the world’s second largest economy, the international community expected China to shoulder greater responsibilities. The BRI has great potential for stimulating economic growth and achieving a more balanced development, which will create an extraordinary sector of Eurasian development. In 2013, Xi Jinping creatively proposed land-sea joint development by integrating the Silk Road Economic Belt with the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, which he pointed out as “a great cause for the benefits of people from all countries along the routes.”2

The BRI has expanded to Europe, Asia and Africa, crossing the two ends of the Eurasian continent, with one end in the developed European economic zone, the other in the dynamic East Asian economic zone, and the vast Eurasian hinterland in between. What makes the BRI an innovative enterprise is the fact that it connects two economic zones and renders the development opportunities of one accessible to the other. The strengthening of interconnectivity on the Eurasian continent will open up a new economic space and bring about new dynamics to global economic growth. Under the guidance of the BRI, China’s call for development also accords with the demands of countries along the routes. The China-europe Railway Express links the two major economic zones, realizes a high level of interconnectivity, promotes economic and trade development in the countries along the routes, enhances trade and investment, promotes international cooperation on production capacity and equipment manufacturing, and increases the overall economic strength and growth space of all Eurasian countries. So far, the China-europe Rail Express has dispatched more than 10,000 trains, the area of transport covered has expanded rapidly, and the cargo categories have

continuously increased, making it a great artery of international overland transportation.

The BRI has achieved remarkable outcomes in strengthening interconnectivity among countries and regions, facilitating an open world economy, and realizing the UN’S 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Developing countries have particularly benefited from this initiative. The smooth implementation of the BRI stems from its “mass approach.” More and more countries and people are welcoming the idea and are working in the same direction with the BRI, because the BRI is accessible to average people, relevant to their livelihood, and conforming to their ideas. The BRI brings about real employment, growth of income and other tangible benefits. The BRI revolves around down-to-earth actions, rather than mere high-sounding, self-ingratiating slogans or simple preaching. In 2018, China invested US$15.6 billion in countries alone the BRI routes, achieving an increase of 8.9%, bringing about 840,000 jobs to the host countries in the form of foreign contracted projects.3 Xi Jinping emphasized four things that “will not change,” namely, China’s determination to maintain world peace, to promote common development, to build international partnerships, and to uphold multilateralism. Such a policy is resounding and forceful: the BRI is a peoplecentered development initiative,4 so the litmus test for the BRI shall be whether or not the people themselves feel satisfied.

A great template for building a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind

The international system is currently undergoing a period of great transformation and profound reforms, with old and new rules operating simultaneously, and with a sharp contrast between different concepts. Are we to have a zero-sum game or promote win-win cooperation? Staying isolated or

embracing interconnectivity? Going alone or going hand-in-hand? Adopting beggar-thy-neighbor policies or facing challenges together? These are the tough choices the international community has to confront.

Peace and development remain the theme of the age. The world is undergoing multi-polarization, economic globalization, social informatization, and cultural diversification in a profound way. With emerging and developing countries rising rapidly, the distribution of power in the international community becomes more balanced, and the future of people from all countries more closely linked than ever before. Improving the global governance system and making it evolve towards a fairer, more reasonable and inclusive one conforms to the demand of the times. How China, as a giant economy, defines the relationship between its own interests and the interests of the rest is of crucial importance.

China believes that expanding common interests can help regulate cooperation between countries and make them builders, rather than destroyers, of the common cause. As an important vehicle of improving global governance, the BRI helps build the new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind. “Making the BRI a practical platform for promoting the community with a shared future for mankind originates from China’s practices in reform and opening-up and is based on its long-term development requirements. It also accords with the traditional Chinese idea of ‘all under heaven are one family’ and fits into the Chinese worldview of ‘cherishing men from afar and harmonizing with all countries under the heaven,’ thus occupying the moral high ground in the international community. To jointly advance the BRI is not only a question of economic cooperation, but also represents an approach for improving global development, governance, as well as the health of economic globalization.”5 It does not consist in mere high-sounding rhetoric, but proposes a plan of action to promote common prosperity for all the surrounding countries. China has

5 “Xi Jinping Attends Symposium on the Fifth Anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative and Delivers an Important Speech,” Xinhua, August 27, 2018, http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/201808/27/c_1123335396.htm.

not only delivered nice-sounding words, but has also started to act accordingly. “In the face of the problems of the age, China regards making new and greater contributions to mankind as its duty. China is willing to work with countries around the world to build a community with a shared future for mankind, to develop global partnerships, to expand friendly cooperation, and to embark on a mutually respectful, fair and just, and win-win type of new international relations, which will make the world a more peaceful place and provide people with more happiness.”6 Therefore, the joint development of the BRI will become a test case and an incubator for building the new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind.

An Open and Inclusive Initiative

The BRI is like a sapling: it takes time and careful nurture from all sides to grow into a towering tree. With the successful implementation and operation of a number of BRI flagship projects, the BRI has created more employment opportunities for the locals, promoted their livelihood as well as the prospects of economic development. Deriving vitality from its inherent inclusiveness and progressiveness, the BRI has thus been welcomed by people from many countries and regions.

A progressive concept of cooperation

In summary, the BRI adheres to the “3-5-5” cooperation concept: achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration; policy coordination, facilities connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration and people-to-people bonds; the way of peace, prosperity, openness, innovation and civilization. The above-mentioned elements endow the BRI with the qualities of equality, openness, tolerance, reciprocity and progressiveness, demonstrating what it is and how it should be built. The BRI will be achieved through

discussion and collaboration by all and its achievements as well will be shared by all. The BRI will not be imposed by force, and there is no compulsory selling. The concept behind the BRI is in line with the spirit of ancient Silk Road. “Spanning thousands of miles and years, the ancient silk routes embody the spirit of peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit. The Silk Road spirit has become a great heritage of human civilization.”7

The Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-africa Cooperation held in September 2018 focused on win-win cooperation and building a closer community of shared future between China and Africa. At the summit, Xi Jinping put forward the “five-no” approach in China’s relations with Africa: no interference in African countries’ pursuit of development paths that fit their national conditions; no interference in African countries’ internal affairs; no imposition of China’s will on African countries; no attachment of political strings to assistance to Africa; and no seeking of selfish political gains in investment and financing cooperation with Africa. China hopes that this “five-no” approach could apply to other countries as they deal with matters regarding Africa.8 The above principles have established a self-discipline standard for China-africa cooperation and have demonstrated China’s high ethical pursuit in international development cooperation.9 Moreover, these principles not only apply to China-africa cooperation, but also to cooperation with all partners participating in the BRI.

Diverse methods of cooperation

The BRI is rooted in the historical soil of the Silk Road, with a focus on Asia, Europe and Africa, but is open to all. The BRI partners come from all

over the world, from Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas. So far, China has established a liaison office for follow-up activities in the wake of the first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in 2017, set up the Research Center for the Belt and Road Financial and Economic Development and the Facilitating Center for Building the Belt and Road, built the Multilateral Development Financial Cooperation Center in cooperation with multilateral development banks, and launched a capacity building center in partnership with the IMF.10 The above-mentioned efforts will continue to enrich and improve the mechanisms and methods for BRI international cooperation.

The BRI is innovative in its models of international cooperation, and focuses on connecting with the development strategies of relevant countries and regions. The BRI stresses both bilateral and multilateral cooperation, effectively expanding the depth and breadth of international cooperation. The “infrastructure + industrial park + capacity cooperation” model has been promoted. First, China has been actively seeking to connect with other partners’ development strategies, such as the “Bright Road” of Kazakhstan, the “Prairie Road” of Mongolia, the Eurasian Economic Union of Russia, the “Industry 4.0” of Thailand, the “Global Maritime Fulcrum” of Indonesia, the Laotian program of transformation from landlocked to land-linked state, the “Two Corridors and One Economic Circle” of Vietnam, the “Rectangular Strategy” of Cambodia, and the “Vision 2030” of Saudi Arabia. Second, China closely cooperates with partners to tailor flagship projects, such as the Chinapakistan Economic Corridor, the China-myanmar Economic Corridor, and the New International Land-sea Trade Corridor, a demonstration project for interconnectivity between China and Singapore. Third, some sub-regional cooperation has come into being. For example, mechanisms like the Lancangmekong cooperation and the China-pakistan-afghanistan cooperation have been put on the agenda. These flexible and diverse mechanisms complement each other and jointly promote cooperation across various fields to bring about more outcomes.

Remarkable achievements of cooperation

The first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation held in Beijing in May 2017 was a milestone. The Forum gathered greater consensus and clarified the direction of the BRI. Its joint communiqué and list of major outcomes clearly demonstrated that the program proposed by China had developed into an international consensus, meaning that the BRI had become a common cause for the international community.

The BRI cooperation closely follows the fundamental issue of development, which not only drives China’s further opening-up, but also benefits the countries along the routes. In the past five years, the BRI has greatly enhanced China’s investment liberalization and trade facilitation. It has expanded China’s open space from areas along the coastline and the Changjiang River, to the areas inland and along the border, forming a new pattern of land-sea linkage, and West-east mutual benefits. China’s trade volume in goods with the BRI countries now tops more than US$5 trillion. China delivered foreign direct investment of more than US$60 billion, creating more than 200,000 local jobs and making China’s outbound investment a major engine for global FDI growth.11 A number of landmark projects took root and became demonstration projects for the BRI: the China-pakistan Economic Corridor has achieved major milestones; The Mombasa -Nairobi Railroad, which was built by China, was inaugurated in May 2017; the Djibouti-addis Ababa Railway, the first electrified railway in East Africa built using Chinese standards and equipment, was officially put into commercial use in January 2018. In addition, the China-egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone, the China-belarus Industrial Park, and the China-europe Rail Express have all exemplified the achievements of the BRI, winning great recognition and praise from the international community.

China and Russia have both expressed interest in exploring the Arctic

waterway and jointly advanced the “Ice Silk Road.” Sino-russian cooperation has gathered momentum. In 2018, the bilateral trade has made new breakthroughs in terms of both scale and quality. According to preliminary statistics, as of mid-december 2018, Sino-russian trade volume has exceeded US$100 billion, setting a new historical record. China continues to be Russia’s largest trading partner, and Russia is China’s tenth largest trading partner.12 It shows that the BRI can inject new vitality into bilateral cooperation between China and countries along the routes.

Broad prospects of cooperation

Looking into the future, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, represented by artificial intelligence, big data, and 5G, is expected to reshape the world economic and technological structure, accelerate development of globalization, and bring about greater opportunities for common prosperity. A new generation of information technologies will serve as a catalyst to the rise of the “Digital Silk Road,” further overcoming the barriers and promoting better connectivity. On one hand, China is shifting from the stage of high-speed growth to the stage of high-quality growth, which will provide major new opportunities for the world. According to preliminary data of China’s National Bureau of Statistics, China’s GDP exceeded 90 trillion yuan for the first time in 2018. Calculating on the basis of the total population at the end of 2018, the per capita GDP of China is now close to US$10,000. According to the criteria of the World Bank, China is about to enter the ranks of high-income countries.13 This means that China will have the largest consumer market in the world. On the other hand, the rise of a large number of emerging economies and developing countries will release greater growth potential. A series of major projects have progressed smoothly. Among them, the Sino-maldives Friendship Bridge was opened

to traffic, the Mombasa-nairobi Railway was put into operation, the Gwadar Port functions with operational capacity, and the main facilities in the second phase of the Hambantota Port project of Sri Lanka have been completed.14 In 2018, China’s import from and export to BRI countries totaled 8.37 trillion yuan, registering an increase of 13.3% on a year-onyear basis, which was 3.6 percentage points higher than the growth rate of the country’s overall foreign trade volume. The trade potential between China and BRI countries is being continuously realized and has become a new driving force for the expansion of foreign trade. Among these, China’s import from and export to Russia, Saudi Arabia and Greece increased by 24%, 23.2% and 33% respectively.15

Giving a new spirit of the age to the historical symbol of the Silk Road, the BRI thus appears old while yet young. In just a few years, the BRI has achieved a successful opening, featuring high starting standards, a stable pace and many shining achievements. It has not only conformed to the trend of globalization, but also strengthened the process of globalization in return.

The BRI Is Not a Zero-sum Battlefield

Like most new things, the BRI is confronting ups and downs, and twists and turns. Judging from its overall situation, the rise of anti-globalization, trade protectionism, and geopolitical risks have all cast shadow on the BRI. At the same time, the BRI is often misread or even denounced by some, and some BRI projects have also encountered setbacks in the process of their implementation. To face these problems and challenges objectively and calmly, and to handle them properly and calibrate the future course of the BRI will be conducive to raising the initiative’s quality and efficiency in the next stage and pushing the projects forward.

Growing pains facing the Belt and Road construction

Some people are keen on seeing the BRI and its practices through tinted glasses, muttering a variety of derogatory remarks from time to time. A “Chinese version of the Marshall Plan,” a “model-exporting strategy,” “debttrap diplomacy,” an initiative to “establish China’s own sphere of influence,” an “economically predatory policy,” and a Chinese effort to “supplant the existing the international system” are just a few examples of distorted opinion on the BRI. Part of the rhetoric has been circulated simply for the sake of opposing the BRI because it was an initiative put forward by China which some forces simply refuse to endorse, while others have deliberately bad-mouthed the BRI by asserting that it’s unsustainable. Some objections have been propounded simply because the BRI has achieved more than expected; others are mere distortions and groundless accounts aimed at obfuscating the public about the BRI.

When it comes to “debt-trap diplomacy,” Sri Lanka is often pushed to the fore as a major example. Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to China Karunasena Kodituwakku has unequivocally denied that borrowing or infrastructure financing from China could plunge the country into a “debt crisis.” He explained that all requests for loans made by Sri Lanka are in accordance with its own needs and China has never forced Sri Lanka to borrow, and that the port city of Colombo has great commercial potential, whose future income would help repay its foreign debt.16 African Union officials also rejected the “debt trap” rhetoric. One Sudanese diplomat pointed out that “China has signed bilateral investment protection agreements with project partners to provide them with interest-free and low-interest loans or financial resources to help African countries achieve their development goals. Every project can be win-win.”17 Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng also pointedly remarked, “It has only been five years since China put forth the BRI. The debt

problem of developing countries has a much longer history, so it would be unfair to blame the BRI or China for their debt problem.”18

In fact, in the process of jointly building the BRI, China has neither imposed it on anyone, nor has it imposed unacceptable conditions. Every BRI project is the result of consultations on an equal footing. At present, more than 150 countries and international organizations have signed BRI cooperation documents with China, and a large number of cooperation projects have taken root and born fruit, injecting strong impetus into the economic and social development of the countries involved. Achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration is the golden principle for building the BRI. In the process of advancing the BRI with relevant countries, China has upheld the principles of equality, openness, transparency and acting in accordance with market dynamics and international rules.19 The BRI has forcefully foiled the critics by making such remarkable achievements within such a short period of time. The world now witnesses unbalanced development, so while some people still choose to spread doubts about the BRI, more and more countries and more and more people choose instead to welcome and support the BRI.

Welcoming and encouraging different interconnectivity proposals

Connectivity involves huge infrastructure projects. A single tree does not make a forest. Improving connectivity requires all countries to join forces and work together. Infrastructure projects are generally not proprietary, but are in the form of public goods, so more and more countries should be encouraged to participate. China welcomes various infrastructure initiatives put forward by other countries and is willing to engage in mutually beneficial cooperation with all interested parties.

In 2018, the European Commission and the European External Action Service jointly issued a policy document entitled “Connecting Europe & Asia:

The EU Strategy,” expounding the EU’S plan to achieve the vision of a betterconnected Eurasia and expressing the intention to strengthen cooperation with Asian countries. The European Commission said in a statement that the EU would commit to building an EU connectivity outline, focusing on building transportation, energy, digital and interpersonal network infrastructure, and building connectivity partnerships with Asian countries and organizations. The document named China as the primary bilateral cooperation partner, and emphasized the concept of the Eu-china Connectivity Platform and the cooperation between the EU and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). In response, the spokesman of Chinese Foreign Ministry praised the document for it speaks positively about the significance of Asia-europe connectivity and its role in promoting economic growth for both continents, advocating “comprehensive, sustainable and rules-based connectivity” and signaling the EU’S willingness to strengthen cooperation with Asian countries, including China. China looks forward to the EU playing a constructive role in advancing the Eurasian connectivity and sending out the positive signal of promoting the economic cooperation between the Eurasian countries and building an open world economy.20 Most European countries believe that the BRI is a positive contribution to strengthening Asia-europe cooperation, yet a few countries still harbor doubts about China’s rise. China and the EU have strengthened policy communication and synergy, and subsequently discussed and jointly formulated rules for the BRI and Eurasian connectivity strategies, which are conducive to enlarging the “cake” of cooperation and therefore enhancing mutual trust.

Recently, the US, Japan and Australia have also showed their interest in expanding investment in infrastructure across the Indo-pacific region. In July 2018, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the US plans to make a preliminary investment of $113 million in an “Indo-pacific initiative,” focusing on three major areas of digital economy, energy and infrastructure.

In October 2018, the US established the International Development Finance Corporation (USIDFC) and allocated $60 billion to help boost economic growth across the poorer parts of the world by building infrastructure which encompasses energy, seaports and water supplies. Japan and Australia have also expressed intention to conduct infrastructure cooperation in the Indopacific region. Although the above-mentioned programs contain elements and intentions which are primarily focused on limiting China’s growing influence, China will deal with it calmly and frankly. This is because the more things that are done to improve infrastructure and people’s livelihood in the region, the better. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson stressed that “talking the talk is not as good as walking the walk” and expressed the hope that the US, Japan and Australia would “make substantial financial contributions and take more concrete steps.”21

A venue for mutually beneficial cooperation

In the era of globalization, everyone should enjoy an equal right to develop and be provided equal opportunities for development. Only common development can bring about common prosperity and universal peace across the world. China emulates those who do better and is willing to see other countries develop. It will never consider such development as a threat. The trend of globalization is irreversible, and we need to think about how equitable sharing, openness and reciprocity for the dividends of globalization may be better achieved. If most developing countries fail to develop, the widening gap between the global North and the global South will inevitably bog down the world economy and harm the goals set by the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Jointly building the BRI precisely provides an open platform for synergizing development objectives of each country with the sustainable development goals of the UN, and facilitates the realization of mutually beneficial development. In this sense, in the coordinate system of international

sustainable development, the weight of the BRI is bound to increase.

The BRI helps rebalance the dynamics of world economic growth. Before the global financial crisis in 2008, the driving force of world economic growth came from developed economies. After the crisis, emerging markets and developing countries have become the major source of world economic growth, contributing more than developed countries. Most of the BRI countries are either emerging market or developing countries, and strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation with them will bring about a new dynamic for world economic growth. The reason why the BRI has gathered so much support and backing in the international community is that China has followed the principle of consultation and cooperation for shared benefits rather than dominance by a single party, and has kept the BRI open, transparent and inclusive rather than building an exclusive circle. Moreover, China believes the BRI must be green, environment friendly and sustainable in pursuit of high quality, and has worked to see that Bri-related undertakings follow the rules, international law and the laws of all countries concerned.22

No Best, Only Better

Since it was put forward in 2013, the BRI, with the joint efforts of all concerned parties, has completed the framework layout and achieved remarkable results in the beginning stages. There is no best, only better, in the process of implementing the BRI. In order to better implement the BRI, it is necessary to recalibrate its focus, pay more attention to details, set the benchmarks of high-quality development and live up to them.

Pursuing high-quality, high-level and high-standard development

As the chief designer of the BRI, President Xi Jinping has given instructions on how to draw a “meticulous painting” of the BRI in the future when he summed up its major achievements thus far. In the future, efforts

should be made in three directions: implementing the projects, opening up the markets, and improving financial support. It is necessary to promote vigorous exchanges in the fields of education, science and technology, culture, sports, tourism, health and archaeology, and launch effective programs to elevate local people’s livelihood under the BRI framework. It is necessary to regulate investment and management practices of the enterprises involved, making them law-abiding, environmentally friendly and socially responsible ambassadors for the BRI. It is also important to prevent risks from overseas, by improving the risk prevention system and comprehensively elevating relevant security support as well as the ability to deal with risks.23 President Xi Jinping has stressed the need to carry out the BRI with a high-quality orientation and bring it closer to improving the livelihood of average people, which is the key to the BRI’S future success. To this end, China will make joint efforts with other BRI countries, sum up experience in a timely fashion, deepen cooperation, improve mechanism and capacity building, to better advance the BRI at a higher level.

Deepening relations with the outside world with greater openness

The BRI is based on China’s reform and opening-up. In order to achieve greater success in the future, the BRI must be accompanied by a deeper reform and a wider opening-up. In this sense, the BRI is an upgraded version of China’s opening-up to the outside world in the new era and an important platform for promoting mutual benefits and win-win outcomes. It is hoped by China that through jointly building the BRI, a new round of high-level opening to the outside world will be initiated, so as to provide the world with more opportunities for investment, new markets and greater cooperation. China also hopes that by jointly building the BRI, new space and new opportunities can be achieved for its own development, especially by transforming China’s western provinces into a pioneer of the opening-up policy, thus shaping a prospect of interconnected and mutually beneficial

development between the western interior and the eastern coast.24

Practices of more than five years show that jointly building the BRI has greatly raised China’s level of trade liberalization and investment facilitation, which in turn has injected new dynamics into global economic growth. China holds a stake in maintaining stability of the international order. China’s enhanced opening-up will be conducive to bringing about high-quality development to the BRI. At the beginning of 2018, China announced four measures to pursue further opening: significantly broadening market access, creating a more attractive investment environment, strengthening protection of intellectual property rights, and taking the initiative to expand imports.25 At the end of 2018, the inaugural China International Import Expo was successfully held, which was the first national exhibition ever held with the specific theme of import. At the Expo, President Xi announced major measures to expand opening-up in five areas: stimulating the potential for increased imports, continuing to broaden market access, fostering a world-class business environment, exploring new horizons of opening-up, and promoting international cooperation at multilateral and bilateral levels.26 The fact that China’s top leader announced so many major measures at such a pace demonstrates that China is supporting the multilateral trade system and working to create by its concrete actions an open world economy. In the future, China will continue to hold such import expos and is willing to open up its huge domestic market to the world, sharing opportunities for development with all concerned parties.

Making the BRI a chorus of all partners

Since the very beginning, the BRI has become a grand narrative of winwin cooperation among countries along the routes. As the BRI continues to advance into the future, its level of multilateral participation and

institutionalization will grow. Multilateral cooperation is conducive to sharing responsibilities and risks among participating countries, improving the BRI’S level of institutionalization and rule of law, thus making China’s cooperation with relevant countries more down-to-earth. In view of the BRI countries’ complex and diverse political settings and business environment, China has actively explored third-party cooperation with the countries concerned. China and Japan are exploring the cooperation model of “China+japan+x” in Southeast Asia. At the same time, in order to extensively listen to the opinions and suggestions of all concerned parties, China has also taken the initiative to set up an advisory council to implement the principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration, which helps gather better intellectual support for the BRI. In December 2018, the first meeting of the Advisory Council of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation was held in Beijing. Topics discussed at the meeting include the BRI and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the world economic growth, as well as the BRI’S key mechanisms and capacity building. Members of the Council agreed that jointly building the BRI is conducive to promoting an open world economy, delivering sustainable development to all countries, and addressing global challenges.27 While one goes faster when he is alone, he goes further when there are partners around. The BRI is a chorus of concerned countries along the routes working together to promote a better world, and it is bound to proceed further at a steady pace.

Promoting public-private partnership to share risks and benefits

At present, most of BRI projects are proposed and funded by various governments. Such a pattern is reasonable and effective in the initial stages of the BRI. However, in the long run, orienting toward and encouraging private funding in infrastructure and resource development becomes a major issue. Because of the characteristics of infrastructure investment such as long financial

cycle, risk concentration and scattered revenue, it has become increasingly urgent to diversify project financing, in particular, to actively guide private funds into infrastructure and resource development projects. In this context, the public-private partnership (PPP) model has become a common mode in the world, which helps combine different parties’ strengths, complement their capacities and reduce risks. Leveraging private investment through public funds will also help fill the financing gap. Public and private funds can complement each other and optimize cost- and risk-sharing mechanisms for cross-border projects, finally achieving mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation.

Telling a good story and fostering affinity and attractiveness

The BRI is a wonderful chapter of common development and common prosperity written by China and the world in the new era. It is building a road on which the world’s major civilizations meet, and where rich and colorful cultures define its nature. Cultural exchange can touch the soul and enhance mutual understanding and tolerance among peoples from all over the world, and it lies in people-to-people, heart-to-heart communication, which requires China to think in others’ shoes, promote public diplomacy, bring benefits to more average people, build public consensus, and win over the hearts and minds of common people. It is necessary to tell more downto-earth stories about the BRI and the people concerned. In fact, many BRI projects are aimed at elevating people’s livelihood which meet urgent needs and benefit local people. For example, the shortage of electricity is a common bottleneck restricting the economic growth of many developing countries. The completion of many power projects under the BRI framework has brought light and warmth to local people, which provides handy source materials for telling a good BRI story. The Mombasa-nairobi railway China helped build has created nearly 50,000 jobs for Kenya and driven its GDP up by 1.5%. CPEC, the China-pakistan Economic Corridor, contributed 2.5 percentage points to Pakistan’s GDP in 2016, which grew by 4.7%. In Sri Lanka, the Puttalam coal fired plant built by China is now providing over 40% of the country’s electricity, benefiting 20 million plus people. About one third of

additional electricity added to grid in Africa is attributable to China-invested projects.28 To tell the story of the BRI’S mutual benefits and win-win outcomes, the participation of young people is necessary for cultivating new forces to inherit the Silk Road spirit.

Conclusion

The year 2019 marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Over the past 70 years, the Chinese Communists have worked hard and explored a broad road to peaceful development based on China’s own national conditions, and the BRI is the extension of this road. Jointly building the BRI is an important part of Xi Jinping Diplomatic Thought, an important measure to comprehensively promote major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and will certainly constitute a beautiful chapter in promoting the common development of mankind in the 21st century.

China and the world have formed a close symbiotic relationship. While fostering its own development through the BRI, China also provides assistance for developing countries within its own capacity and has made significant contributions to the cause of global development. The world has never paid so much attention to China’s role, nor has it benefited so much from China’s efforts. The second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation will further expand the BRI’S circle of friends, leading the world into China, but also bringing China into the world. In short, the BRI is neither a foreign aid program nor a geopolitical tool, nor is it a battlefield of zero-sum game. It is an opportunity for win-win cooperation among the parties, and an epic symphony in which all the parties play together in magnificent harmony.