Landslide susceptibility in the Belt and Road Countries: continental step of a multi-scale approach

AbstractThe Belt and Road Initiative is a collaboration project launched by the Chinese Government to connect more than 65 countries all over the word by developing infrastructures, facilities, and support collaborations among involved Countries. The Silk Road Disaster Risk Reduction is a sub-project of the Belt and Road Initiative focused on mitigation and prevention of natural risks in the involved countries. In this context, this work presents a method to approach landslide susceptibility zoning on a continental scale that takes into account the limitations due to the completeness of landslide inventories and the scale and data quality of causal factors. A first attempt to produce a pixel-based statistical susceptibility map is described. All the data and software used in this work are open and open source. The landslide susceptibility zoning has been carried out in south-Asia using the NASA-COOLR landslide dataset through the Weight of Evidence method and it has been evaluated and validated by means of the ROC analysis. The results reveal a good prediction capacity and highlights that slope, relative relief and annual precipitation are the causative factors that play a major role in predisposing slope instability in the study area. Based on them, the method will be applied to the rest of the Belt and Road Countries.

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Demystifying the Belt and Road Initiative: China’s domestic and non-strategic policy?

Asian Journal of Comparative Politics ◽

10.1177/20578911211038876 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 205789112110388

Author(s):

Yuan Jiang

Keyword(s):

Global Strategy ◽

Chinese Economy ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Xi Jinping ◽

One Belt One Road ◽

Belt And Road ◽

Strategic Policy ◽

The Difference ◽

The Belt And Road

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a central policy of the Chinese government. The initiative is directly associated with President Xi Jinping, who first put forward the BRI in Kazakhstan and Indonesia in 2013, initially as One Belt One Road. Different from repetitive literature that concludes the BRI as China's global strategy, this article makes a contribution to argue that the BRI is China's domestic and non-strategic policy. To justify this argument, this article analyses how the BRI has been embedded into aspects of Chinese domestic policy by revealing its nexuses with Chinese domestic economy, politics and ideology. To deepen the understanding of the BRI's connection with the Chinese economy, this article explores the link between the BRI and China's supply-side structural reform. Meanwhile, this research demystifies the BRI as a global strategy and the difference between joining and rejecting the BRI to prove the BRI's non-strategic essence. In the end, this article discusses the BRI's far-reaching geopolitical influence.

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We Should Push Countries along “Belt and Road Initiative” to Build Green Supply Chain

China and the World ◽

10.1142/s2591729318500062 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 01 (01) ◽

pp. 1850006

Author(s):

Jingyan Fu

Keyword(s):

Supply Chain ◽

International Cooperation ◽

Green Supply Chain ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Ecological Benefits ◽

The People ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Belt And Road

Building a green supply chain in the countries along the “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) route will not only generate huge economic and ecological benefits, it will also profit people in these countries and encourage the people in these countries to identify with the BRI as well as advance the development of this Initiative. Therefore, this research suggests the Chinese government taking the lead in jointly building a green supply chain with countries along BRI after the “Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation” in July 2017.

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Repositioning China in the Global Education Hierarchy Through the Sino–Foreign Educational Partnerships in the Belt and Road Initiative

China and Europe on the New Silk Road ◽

10.1093/oso/9780198853022.003.0009 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 162-179

Author(s):

Jie Gao

Keyword(s):

Global Education ◽

Educational Programs ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Educational Partnerships ◽

Ministry Of Education ◽

History Of ◽

Belt And Road ◽

Foreign Education ◽

The Belt And Road

Chapter 9 explores the roles of Sino–foreign education partnerships (SFEP) within China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), in particular, how it has been shifted from a strategic tool to reform and upgrade China’s domestic higher education sector, to becoming a diplomatic instrument for building connections between China and the regions and countries along the BRI routes. The history of the development of SFEP reveals how policy and regulation have evolved. The shifting paradigm of the Chinese government, through its MOE (Ministry of Education), in regulating SFEP provides a window into the grand transformation of China’s narrative towards its position in the global education hierarchy. China is shifting from the follower/importer of “advanced foreign educational programs,” to a proactive player that builds a platform and framework for educational collaboration in the world. Now, China is becoming an initiator/exporter of its own educational programs and culture along the belt and road.

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Economic Complexity Based Recommendation Enhance the Efficiency of the Belt and Road Initiative

Entropy ◽

10.3390/e20090718 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 20 (9) ◽

pp. 718 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hao Liao ◽

Xiao-Min Huang ◽

Alexandre Vidmer ◽

Yi-Cheng Zhang ◽

Ming-Yang Zhou

Keyword(s):

Geographical Location ◽

Geographic Location ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Recommendation Algorithm ◽

Development Direction ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Impact ◽

The Belt And Road ◽

The Ideal

The Belt and Road initiative (BRI) was announced in 2013 by the Chinese government. Its goal is to promote the cooperation between European and Asian countries, as well as enhancing the trust between members and unifying the market. Since its creation, more and more developing countries are joining the initiative. Based on the geographical location characteristics of the countries in this initiative, we propose an improvement of a popular recommendation algorithm that includes geographic location information. This recommendation algorithm is able to make suitable recommendations of products for countries in the BRI. Then, Fitness and Complexity metrics are used to evaluate the impact of the recommendation results and measure the country’s competitiveness. The aim of this work is to provide countries’ insights on the ideal development direction. By following the recommendations, the countries can quickly increase their international competitiveness.

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China’s Belt and Road Initiative Extension to Central and Eastern European Countries - Sixteen Nations, Five Summits, Many Challenges

Croatian International Relations Review ◽

10.1515/cirr-2017-0007 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 23 (78) ◽

pp. 57-76 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Marsela Musabelliu

Keyword(s):

Global Economy ◽

European Countries ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Eastern European ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

International Affairs ◽

Cooperation Mechanism ◽

Belt And Road ◽

Eastern European Countries ◽

The Belt And Road

Abstract The Belt and Road Initiative proclaimed by President Xi in 2013, a strategy developed by the Chinese government, is very important to China but is not confined to China. In order for the initiative to be successful it needs to be embraced by the countries on the terrestrial and maritime route indicated in the plan. In the late 1980s Deng Xiaoping proposed to integrate Socialism with Chinese Characteristics (Zhongguo Tese Shehui Zhuyi, ) into global capitalism and in the 1990s the Jiang Zemin leadership initiated the Going out policy (Zouchuqu Zhanlue, ) – the current Belt and Road Initiative is China’s continuation in implementing those policies into actual deeds. China’s accession to WTO in 2001 marked China’s full integration into the global economy and since then the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has become the largest trading partner for more than 180 countries. The Xi-Li administration has been extremely proactive since it was established in 2012; from that year on, Chinese behavior in international affairs has gained an ever-growing role as a forger of economic and diplomatic ties between countries. The primary example of this behavior is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). As every serious foreign policy plan, the BRI is an accumulation of various other initiatives. For example, the cooperation mechanism “16+1”, with which the PRC has approached Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC), can be integrated under the BRI. This paper analizes the “16+1” China-CEEC cooperation mechanism in the context of the bigger BRI initiative, and tries to comprehend the economic and political factors intertwined with its implementation.

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China’s Foreign Aid Training: Targeting Becoming an Influential Culture Sharer

Journal of Asian and African Studies ◽

10.1177/0021909620946351 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 002190962094635

Author(s):

Skylar Biyang Sun ◽

Xinzhi Xu ◽

Xiaohang Zhao

Keyword(s):

Foreign Aid ◽

Training Programs ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

National Scale ◽

Short Term ◽

Cultural Products ◽

Fragmented Authoritarianism ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Belt And Road

Since the 1990s, China has formalized its short-term foreign aid training for foreign officials and technological personnel. This type of training often lasts for 21 days and participants from invited countries arrive in China for a period of condensed study, with all fees covered by the Chinese government. By the end of 2009, China had organized more than 4000 short-term training programs for over 120,000 personnel from more than 50 countries. Along with the establishment of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan and the constructional needs of the Belt and Road Initiative, China has gradually increased the export of its cultural products in foreign aid training. Surprisingly, such national-scale training is largely omitted from current scholarly research. Employing the “fragmented authoritarianism” model, we look at the administrative structure of China’s foreign aid training and provide rudimentary research into the field.

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THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE: THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CHINESE RAILWAY EXPRESS TRAINS

ACTUAL PROBLEMS OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS ◽

10.17721/apmv.2020.145.1.81-87 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 81-87

Author(s):

Thomas Chan Man Hung

Keyword(s):

Cold War ◽

Silk Road ◽

Great Powers ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Colonial Expansion ◽

The Us ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Cold War ◽

The Belt And Road

Introduction. Belt and Road Initiative of China is not something novel. It is the present-day continuation of the millennium-old Eurasian Silk Road that had been disrupted by the colonial expansion of the European powers. After the Cold War even the US and EU have attempted to restore the old Silk Road but with limited success. It was only in 2013 when the Chinese Government announced the Initiative that the world, not just the great powers, has begun once again to speak and think of the revival of the old Silk Road with enthusiasm.

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مبادرة الحزام والطريق: نشأة وأهداف / The Belt and Road Initiative: Origin and Objectives

Chinese and Arab Studies ◽

10.1515/caas-2021-2008 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 81-89

Author(s):

Ding Long

Keyword(s):

Regional Integration ◽

Financial Integration ◽

Bilateral Trade ◽

Policy Coordination ◽

Silk Road ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Maritime Silk Road ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Belt And Road

Abstract The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a strategy initiated by Chinese government that seeks to connect Asia with Africa and Europe via land and maritime networks with the aim of increasing commercial exchange, stimulating economic growth and improving regional integration. The BRI comprises a Silk Road Economic Belt and a 21st century Maritime Silk Road. The initiative defines five major priorities, namely policy coordination, infrastructure connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and people-to-people bonds. The BRI has been associated with large investment programs in infrastructure projects. It is also an increasingly important umbrella mechanism for China’s bilateral trade with BRI partners.

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The Belt and Road Initiative in Australian mainstream media: Why did its narratives shift from 2013 to 2021?

Media International Australia ◽

10.1177/1329878x211068835 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1329878X2110688

Author(s):

Yuan Jiang

Keyword(s):

National Policy ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

China Policy ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Media Reporting ◽

Mainstream Media ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Belt And Road

Compared with similar research mainly focusing on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Australian mainstream media using discourse analysis, this paper explores the reasons for the narrative shift by conducting semi-structured interviews with leading and well-known Australian narrative producers. This paper takes two conditions as a given. Firstly, the BRI narratives in Australian mainstream media shifted in tone from mostly positive to highly critical. Secondly, the Australian mainstream media's increasingly negative attitudes towards the BRI are essentially not just about the BRI but the Chinese government. Based on my analysis and interviews, this paper makes contributions by filling in the gap of finding out reasons to explain this narrative shift. More concretely, this paper finds out that while mainstream media is influential in many areas of national policy making, mainstream media reporting on foreign affairs is less so. By comparison, the Australian government's BRI or China policy has a significant impact on Australian mainstream media reporting. This narrative shift has been driven by international politics and Australia's China policy, influenced by Australian audiences’ preference of local news and their local position, and its democratic responsibilities. Meanwhile, the vagueness and constant changing characteristics of the BRI do not help the understanding of the BRI in Australian media.

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Triggers of Delays in International Projects Using Engineering Procurement and Construction Delivery Methods in the Belt and Road Initiative: Case Study of a High-Speed Railway Projects

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13179503 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (17) ◽

pp. 9503

Author(s):

Mohammad Ajmal Nikjow ◽

Li Liang ◽

Xijing Qi ◽

Samad M. E. Sepasgozar ◽

Nicholas Chileshe

Keyword(s):

High Speed ◽

Joint Venture ◽

The Body ◽

Critical Groups ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Belt And Road Initiative ◽

Infrastructure Projects ◽

Site Supervisors ◽

Belt And Road ◽

The Belt And Road

Since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been put in practice by the Chinese government, several High-Speed Railways (HSR) have been built by Chinese Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) firms. However, many delays have created severe detrimental consequences on the progress of most HSR projects. This study sought to explore the essence of the recurring triggers of delays in international EPC HSR projects under the BRI, and a structured questionnaire survey approach was applied to compile the first-hand dataset from Chinese EPC firms working for BRI infrastructure projects. The data were evaluated, and the Relative Importance Index (RII) was adopted to assess the magnitude of the important delay triggers. The findings suggest that HSR projects are still susceptible to unavoidable delays in global construction infrastructure projects. In the engineering phase, improper management of the design, unsustainable land acquisition, and insufficient use of EPC joint venture are the salient trigger of delays. In the procurement phase, the leading causes of unsuitable procurement, undervalued procurement cost, inefficient logistics in labor and materials, improper planning, unqualified site supervisors, inefficient technical standard management, and inefficient constant payment terms are likely to trigger delays in the construction phase HSR projects. Five critical groups of delay factors are identified by this study, which has an essential primary contribution to the body of knowledge and is helpful to EPC contractors working for HSR projects under BRI.

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