BRI and its digital dimension: twists and turns

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 311-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Kozłowski
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Digital Version ◽  
Integration Strategy ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Soviet Central Asia

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the perspectives of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Belt and Road strategy. The challenge in terms of studying the New Silk Road concept comes from the fact of dramatic difference between the declared ambitions of the Chinese state and the elusive character of concrete Chinese involvement, in particular as far as the digital dimension of the strategy is concerned. Design/methodology/approach The goal will be achieved by comparing the Chinese expansion in the Post-Soviet Central Asia with nowadays declarations concerning the digital version of the New Silk Road. For China, the Post-Soviet Central Asia was the first frontier approached on the basis of genuinely own integration strategy: the New Silk Road Diplomacy, which later evolved into the New Silk Road concept. An overview of Chinese activity in the region tells a lot about its grand strategy of today. Findings To paraphrase T.S. Kuhn, what one sees depends on not only what one is looking at but also what one has learned to notice. The Post-Soviet Central Asia shows the way Beijing thinks about integration. PRC achieved the most by basing on the free rider effect: concentrating on economic expansion, while other Powers provided relative regional security and stability. Originality/value The comparison of the beginnings of the New Silk Diplomacy in the 1990s with the plans of the New Digital Road gives a unique angle to grasp the specific features of the Chinese approach to international integration.

scholarly journals Post-Soviet Central Asia in the Focus of Interests of Major Asian States (2019-2020)

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-99
Author(s):  
D. B. Malysheva
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
Economic Interests ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Political Cooperation ◽  
Independent States ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Economic Landscape ◽  
Soviet Central Asia

The study aims at identifying some areas of international political interaction between post-Soviet Central Asian states and the major economic powers of Asia -China, India and Japan. The task is to determine their interests in the Central Asian region with an emphasis on the political component. The current state of political cooperation between China, India, Japan and the countries of Central Asia is considered. Their joint efforts to solve the problems and threats facing the sustainable development of the region are characterized, while overcoming those problems occurs within the framework of the formation of both bilateral and multilateral relations. The dynamics of political and military interaction between China and its Central Asian partners is revealed. It is shown that the regional security sphere is directly linked by China with the problem of protecting its own economic interests in the countries undergoing its Belt and Road program, aimed at changing the economic landscape not only in Central Asia, but throughout Asia. India and Japan, whose positions have come closer against the background of rising China, has defined their own strategies for Central Asia. Politics of major Asian powers in post-Soviet Central Asia are analyzed through the prism of the emergence of a polycentric world in Asia. Its distinctive features are: the emergence of new regional “centers of power”; their confrontation along the line of Sino-Pakistani, Sino-Indian rivalries; involvement of external players (the U.S.) in regional processes. In this regard, attention is drawn to the activities of such a multilateral international structure as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as well as to the development of alternative infrastructure projects and concepts - QUAD, Indo-Pacific, Blue Dot Network. The results of the study are formulated in the following conclusion: the countries of Central Asia and the major regional economic powers in Asia base their relations on the foundation of mutually beneficial interests and equal partnership of independent states.

Central Asia faces debt risk alongside Silk Road gains

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Energy Hub ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Crucial Part ◽  
The Belt And Road

Subject Central Asian gains and risk from the Belt and Road Initiative Significance Central Asian states are a crucial part of the overland component of the Belt and Road Initiative that China is advancing to promote regional security as well as trade. They stand to gain from improved connectivity, but project funding largely consists of Chinese loans that they will have to repay, possibly before the economic benefits are apparent. Impacts Uzbekistan will assume an increasing role as a trade and energy hub. Changed atmospherics will allow Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to work together as the principal regional states. China will be sensitive to fears of 'colonialisation', hiring local workers and stressing the value of its production projects.

Prospects for Belt and Road in Central Asia in 2018-22

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Chinese Investment ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
The Silk Road

Subject Prospects Belt and Road in Central Asia. Significance The Central Asian states are the focus of investment associated with the Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB), the westward overland part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The SREB offers them a unique chance to become central transport hubs rather than peripheral, landlocked territories but they are also seeking to build productive and export capacity through Chinese investment.

Viewpoint – could the belt and road initiative be derailed? An analysis of impediments to completion

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Enderwick
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Dynamic Environment ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Relative Significance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Trade War ◽  
The Belt And Road

Purpose The continuation of China’s belt and road initiative (BRI) is assumed in most analyses. Yet, recent events have created significant reputational damage for China and Chinese businesses. With a trade war evolving into a hegemonic struggle, there are a number of potential developments that could derail the BRI. This paper aims to provide a contemporary review of the factors that could negatively impact its continuation, and what China has done to mitigate the risks. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive paper that groups possible disruptive factors into three groups: internal weaknesses of the BRI and its design; those related to China’s implementation of the BRI and external concerns and pressures. Findings China has actively reviewed and refined the BRI to reduce its perceived weaknesses and increase its attractiveness to potential participants, focussing on debt dependency, transparency and governance. However, this has occurred at the same time as growing concerns regarding China’s international assertiveness, the hegemonic challenge and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Research limitations/implications These changes are occurring within an extremely dynamic environment and any analysis at one point in time is subject to considerable limitations. However, the paper brings together a range of disparate perspectives in a structured manner. Originality/value The classification of possible threats to the BRI is original and provides insights into the relative significance of the diverse challenges that China faces. The paper concludes that while China’s operational focus on the mechanics of the BRI process is necessary, it may not be sufficient to ensure its continuing development. The paper identifies the next step which is conceptualisation of these ideas and of the BRI. Some guidance as to how this might be done is provided.

The Uyghurs in Modern China

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rian Thum
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Tarim Basin ◽  
Small Time ◽  
Modern China ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Majority Population ◽  
Soviet Central Asia ◽  
Independence Movements

The Uyghurs are a Turkic-speaking ethnic group, most of whom live today within the People’s Republic of China. Virtually all Uyghurs are Muslims, and most are oasis farmers, small-time traders, or craftsmen. They constitute the majority population of the Tarim Basin, a region that eventually fell under Chinese rule after the Qing conquest of 1759. Although Turkic speakers predominated in the Tarim Basin for several centuries, the modern Uyghur identity was only named and formalized in the 20th century. During that period, a succession of Chinese states gradually transformed Uyghur lands from a loosely held dependency under the Qing to a closely monitored, assimilationist, settler colony in the 21st century, ruled by a Han Chinese–dominated bureaucracy. Uyghurs inherit traditions rooted in Turko-Persianate Central Asia, elaborated in the 20th century by strong influences from Soviet Central Asia and continually adapted to a political context of shifting outsider regimes punctuated by briefly successful independence movements.

Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, and globalization

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 268-276
Author(s):  
Jean A. Berlie
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Special Administrative Region ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Administrative Region ◽  
Bay Area ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Definition Of

PurposeThis article looks at the differences and similarities between globalization and the role of China on globalization, in particular for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China (HKSAR).Design/methodology/approachThis article is based on research, reading, and interviews on globalization.FindingsChina is promoting the new globalization of the century called Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which is a unique way to boost again the economy of China.Originality/valueStudies of the New Maritime and Land Silk Road of China are rare; in particular, the role of the HKSAR is ignored. Macau also plays a role because it was the first point of globalization in the seventeenth century. China is really a global country, and the Chinese are numerous in all continents. Chinese Internet role is also mentioned. Globalization is a key concept not only for China and Asia but also for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), Africa, and countries in Latin America such as Bolivia and Venezuela. This article looks at the differences and similarities between globalization and the role of China on globalization. The HKSAR and the Greater Bay Area are part of the same country. China is developing the new globalization of the century called, in 2017, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The current definition of Chinese globalization includes land and maritime Silk Road, now the BRI.

South Korea-Uzbekistan ties will grow

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
East Asian ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Energy Infrastructure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Way

Subject Uzbekistan-South Korea ties. Significance Uzbekistan wants to reduce its reliance on Russia by expanding ties to Asia, but without risking becoming over-dependent on China, as it sees Turkmenistan has become. Uzbekistani President Islam Karimov's visit to South Korea in May paved the way for cooperation with Seoul in new areas such as logistics, energy infrastructure, construction and defence. These all represent areas of increasing connections between Central and East Asian nations. Impacts Sixty agreements were signed during Karimov's visit to Seoul worth more than 7.7 billion dollars. These will provide a boost to President Park Geun-Hye's Eurasia Initiative. South Korea will seek to strengthen its position in Central Asia ahead of China's 'New Silk Road' initiative.

Course correction: an emerging US strategy for countering China

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-97
Author(s):  
John Calabrese
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Secondary Source ◽  
China Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Competition ◽  
The Us ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Belt And Road

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate a significant course correction in US–China policy. It examines the increasingly broad dissatisfaction with China policy, which has resulted in an apparent end the era of intensive engagement and led to a hardening of the US approach to China across the policy spectrum, as exemplified by the critique of and incipient efforts to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Design/methodology/approach The research draws on primary and secondary source material to identify evidence of and examine the rationale behind the shift from the USA’s decades-long “engagement” approach toward an in intensifying strategic competition with China. Findings A course correction in US–China policy has been years in the making, and as most now argue is long overdue. The idea that China has emerged as America’s foremost strategic competitor is widely accepted, and indeed deeply ingrained in the thinking of most US foreign affairs professionals. It is also starkly evident in current US declaratory policy and increasingly in its operational policy as well. Research limitations/implications The research offers a fresh perspective on the domestic and diplomatic dimensions of China’s rising. Originality/value The research builds on the latest scholarship on the growth of China’s geopolitical challenge to the USA to explore the development of China–US tensions and rivalries at all levels from the Bush and Obama eras to the present.

Paradigm shift; the emergence of arbitral forum shopping in CPEC investment disputes

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 136-151
Author(s):  
Rao Qasim Idrees ◽  
Rohimi Shapiee ◽  
Haniff Ahamat
Keyword(s):  
Dispute Resolution ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Forum Shopping ◽  
Legal Research ◽  
Investment Policies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Dispute Resolution Mechanism ◽  
Commercial Disputes

Purpose The phenomena of arbitral forum shopping to resolve a commercial investment dispute is still under development and more complicated in many states. However, for Pakistan, it seems in an evolutionary phase, where the country is struggling hard to adopt the best practice of dispute resolution through forum shopping clauses. This struggle is even more inflated with huge Chinese investment through China Pakistan economic corridor (CPEC) projects in Pakistan, which come alongside with commercial investment disputes. For this purpose, the current treaty or contract-based system between China and Pakistan and litigation based domestic civil court structure look obsolete, hence, appear to require reinstatement of forum shopping clauses under concerned treaties or contracts for CPEC investment-related issues. Design/methodology/approach The authors choose a legal research method. The research design is a comparative analysis between CPEC contracts and dispute resolution mechanism between China and Pakistan and also the domestic civil court’s litigation system. This analysis selected by the authors due to inefficient bilateral investment arrangements and efficient resolution of future commercial disputes in CPEC. While the international arbitration system is included in the assessment were particular in the time and space context. The comparison comprises on dispute resolution clauses in free trade agreement (FTA) and bilateral investment treaties (BIT) between China and Pakistan and the system of resolving disputes by CPEC clauses. Findings The authors finds that in the absence of CPEC forum shopping clause under dispute resolution system, Pakistan is highly at risk to lose foreign investors, and therefore, set back the goal of long term economic sustainability in the region. However, China has already made its investment policies safer with establishing three international commercial courts (also referred to as Belt and Road courts), one in Xi’an for the land-based Silk Road Economic Belt, one in Shenzhen for the Maritime Silk Road and one in Beijing that will serve as the headquarters. These courts will be offering litigation, arbitration and mediation services. According to one view, China aims to have all belt and road initiative (BRI) disputes resolved by these courts. This makes Pakistan position more awkward and needs proactive measures, as CPEC investment is based on Pakistan foreign direct investment policies and legal structure. Therefore, it will be complicated and less favourable for Pakistan to deal with such cases under Chinese Courts. Originality/value The paper’s primary contribution is finding that comprehensive analysis of alternative dispute resolution mechanism between China and Pakistan over CPEC investment is inevitable. A socio-legal research combine with an examination of Singapore International Commercial Court functions and mechanism and CPEC plans further contributes to ascertain the best model of the settlement of commercial disputes under investments in Pakistan. This research paper anticipates future economic and legal problems, which Pakistan may encounter.

The Era of the Dragon

2021 ◽  
pp. 176-195
Author(s):  
Maria João Tomás
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Departure Point ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
World Markets ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The Belt And Road ◽  
Great Economy ◽  
The U.S

The upcoming decades are expected to be marked by the rise and consolidation of the People's Republic of China, PRC, as the world's first economy, dethroning the U.S. and altering global economic geopolitics. The Dragon Age will mark the 21st century, with all the consequences that can come from it. This chapter analyzes the changes that are already underway and that prepare China to be the world's great economy. The departure point will be the examination of China's economic situation. Following, the authors move on to analyzing the Belt and Road Investment, the Chinese mega investment that aims to connect China to Europe inspired by the ancient Silk Road, making a geoeconomic analysis of the main world markets and how China has long prepared this economic rise and implicates a political and military ascension statement.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document