What One Belt and One Road? What is its state of development on 2016?

The Belt and Road Initiative refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, a significant development strategy launched by the Chinese government with the intention ofpromoting economic co-operation among countries along the proposed Belt and Road routes. The Initiative has been designed to enhance the orderly free flowof economic factors and the efficient allocation of resources. It is alsointended to further market integration and create a regional economicco-operation framework of benefit to all.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) issued its Vision and Actions on Jointly Building the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road on 28 March 2015. This outlined the framework, key areas of co-operation and co-operation mechanisms with regard to the Belt and Road Initiative.

Conceptual Framework

The Belt and Road Initiative aims toconnect Asia, Europe and Africa along five routes. The Silk Road Economic Beltfocusses on: (1) linking China to Europe through Central Asia and Russia; (2)connecting China with the Middle East through Central Asia; and (3) bringingtogether China and Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Indian Ocean. The 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road, meanwhile, focusses on using Chinese coastal portsto: (4) link China with Europe through the South China Sea and Indian Ocean;and (5) connect China with the South Pacific Ocean through the South China Sea.

Focussing on the above five routes, theBelt and Road will take advantage of international transport routes as well ascore cities and key ports to further strengthen collaboration and build sixinternational economic co-operation corridors. These have been identified asthe New Eurasia Land Bridge, China-Mongolia-Russia, China-Central Asia-WestAsia, China-Indochina Peninsula, China-Pakistan, andBangladesh-China-India-Myanmar.

(1) The New Eurasia Land Bridge EconomicCorridor

The New Eurasia Land Bridge, also known asthe Second Eurasia Land Bridge, is an international railway line running fromLianyungang in China’s Jiangsu province through Alashankou in Xinjiang to Rotterdam in Holland. The China section of the linecomprises the Lanzhou-Lianyungang Railway and the Lanzhou-Xinjiang Railway and stretches through eastern, central and western China. After exiting Chinese territory, the new land bridge passes through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus and Poland, reaching a number of coastal ports in Europe. Capitalising on the New Eurasia Land Bridge, China has opened an international freight rail route linking Chongqing to Duisburg (Germany); a direct freight train running between Wuhan and Mělník and Pardubice(Czech Republic); a freight rail route from Chengdu to Lodz (Poland); and afreight rail route from Zhengzhou to Hamburg (Germany). All these new railroutes offer rail-to-rail freight transport, as well as the convenience of “one declaration, one inspection, one cargo release” for any cargo transported.

(2) The China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor

Linked by land, China, Mongolia and Russiahave long established various economic ties and co-operation by way of frontiertrade and cross-border co-operation. In September 2014, when the three country’s heads of state met for the first time at the Shanghai Co-operationOrganisation (SCO) Dushanbe Summit, agreement was reached on forging tripartiteco-operation on the basis of China-Russia, China-Mongolia and Russia-Mongoliabilateral ties. At the same meeting, the principles, directions and key areasof trilateral co-operation were defined. The three heads of state also agreed to bring together the building of China’s Silk Road Economic Belt, the renovation of Russia’s Eurasia and Bridge and the proposed development of Mongolia’sSteppe Road. This commitment will strengthen rail and highway connectivity and construction, advance customs clearance and transport facilitation, promotecross-national co-operation in transportation, and help establish the China-Russia-Mongolia Economic Corridor. In July 2015, the three leaders held asecond meeting in the Russian city of Ufa. This second summit saw the official adoption of the Mid-term Road map for Development of Trilateral Co-operationbetween China, Russia and Mongolia.

(3) China-Central Asia-West Asia Economic Corridor

The China-Central Asia-West Asia EconomicCorridor runs from Xinjiang in China and exits the country via Alashankou tojoin the railway networks of Central Asia and West Asia before reaching the Mediterranean coast and the Arabian Peninsula. The corridor mainly covers five countries in Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan andTurkmenistan) as well as Iran and Turkey in West Asia.

At the third China-Central AsiaCo-operation Forum, held in Shandong in June 2015, a commitment to “jointly building the Silk Road Economic Belt” was incorporated into a joint declaration signed by China and thefive Central Asian countries. Prior to that, China had signed bilateralagreements on the building of the Silk Road Economic Belt with Tajikistan,Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. China had also concluded a co-operation documentwith Uzbekistan on the building of the Silk Road Economic Belt. This was aimedat further deepening and expanding mutually beneficial co-operation in suchareas as trade, investment, finance, transport and communication. The nationaldevelopment strategies of the five Central Asian countries – including Kazakhstan’s “Road to Brightness”, Tajikistan’s “Energy, Transport and Food” (a three-pronged strategy aimed at revitalising the country), andTurkmenistan’s “Strong andHappy Era” – all share common ground with theestablishment of the Silk Road Economic Belt.

(4) China-Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor

During the Fifth Leaders Meeting on GreaterMekong Sub-regional Economic Co-operation, held in Bangkok in December 2014,Chinese Premier Li Keqiang put forward three suggestions with regard todeepening the relations between China and the five countries in the IndochinaPeninsula. The suggestions included: (1) jointly planning and building anextensive transportation network, as well as number of industrial co-operationprojects; (2) creating a new mode of co-operation for fundraising; and (3)promoting sustainable and co-ordinated socio-economic development. Currently,the countries along the Greater Mekong River are engaged in building ninecross-national highways, connecting east and west and linking north to south. Anumber of these construction projects have already been completed. Guangxi, forexample, has already finished work on an expressway leading to the FriendshipGate and the port of Dongxing at the China-Vietnam border. The province hasalso opened an international rail line, running from Nanning to Hanoi, as wellas introducing air routes to several major Southeast Asian cities.

(5) China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

The concept of the China-Pakistan EconomicCorridor was first raised by Premier Li Keqiang during his visit to Pakistan inMay 2013. At the time, the objective was to build an economic corridor runningfrom Kashgar, Xinjiang, in the north, to Pakistan’s GwadarPort in the south. At present, the two governments have mapped out aprovisional long-term plan for building highways, railways, oil and natural gaspipelines and optic fibre networks stretching from Kashgar to Gwadar Port.According to a joint declaration issued by China and Pakistan in Islamabad inApril 2015, the two countries will proactively advance key co-operationprojects, including phase II of the upgrade and renovation of the KarakoramHighway (the Thakot-Havelian section), an expressway at the east bay of GwadarPort, a new international airport, an expressway from Karachi to Lahore (theMultan-Sukkur section), the Lahore rail transport orange line, the Haier-Rubaeconomic zone, and the China-Pakistan cross-national optic fibre network.

(6) Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor

In a series of meetings during Premier LiKeqiang’s visit to India in May 2013, China and Indiajointly proposed the building of the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar EconomicCorridor. In December 2013, the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar EconomicCorridor Joint Working Group convened its first meeting in Kunming. Officialrepresentatives from the four countries conducted in-depth discussions withregard to the development prospects, priority areas of co-operation andco-operation mechanisms for the economic corridor. They also reached extensiveconsensus on co-operation in such areas as transportation infrastructure,investment and commercial circulation, and people-to-people connectivity. Thefour parties signed meeting minutes and agreed theBangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor joint study programme,establishing a mechanism for promoting co-operation among the four governments.