scholarly journals The Political Economics of the New Silk Road

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Balázs Sárvári ◽  
Anna Szeidovitz
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
World Order ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Sea Transport ◽  
Road Project ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
Trade And Investment ◽  
The Silk Road

AbstractWhat has now been coined the term XXI Century Silk Road had evolved from a speech given by Chinese premier Xi Jinping in Kazakhstan in 2013. It was initially a plan aimed at promoting the bilateral relations of China and its neighbors; however, the initiative had since then traversed the region’s borders and become a global project. This paper examines the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative in light of Chinese-EU relations. It reviews the initiation of the Silk Road Project and focuses on its political economic analysis through investigating the potential routes the Belt can take, the EU-Chinese trade and investment standings as well as the global political context that the increased cooperation and connection is likely to influence. The paper uses the Modern Silk Road concept as an example of China’s foreign policy in the wake of globalization and the emergence of a new multipolar world order. To set the stage we will begin with a political-economic approach of the New Silk Road. Highlighting the possibilities of Chinese high culture, which accommodate global governance, we state that the Modern Silk Road project is one of its materialized forms. The concept of the New Silk Road (together with the Eurasian Union) denies the previous era of corruption and personality cult and indicates a milestone in the development of China, proving that it is already a globally responsible power (Värk, 2015). Even if transport by land is significantly more expensive than transportation by sea, the New Silk Road may have significant advantages: It may take only two weeks, saving potentially a week in shipping time, and diversify China’s dependence on sea transport that could reduce the importance of its regional diplomatic conflicts. Already these aspects show that the purpose of the Modern Silk Road is basically not to explore cost-efficiency but to contribute to the establishment of a new, multipolar world order. The fact that the Modern Silk Road is a supply-driven concept in spite of the historical one underlines this argument. Even if politics dominate, henceforward directing the economic activities, we will nonetheless examine the China-Eastern European relations through the lenses of trade and investment as well. After the initial analysis and description of the Silk Road Economic Belt as a tool of Chinese foreign policy, the paper goes on to examine the potential routes the railway takes from China to Europe. It reviews the trade and investment ties that the two entities share and assesses how this initiative contributes to the rise of Europe and China beside the USA. Lastly, it outlines how various regional and global powers are affected by the renewal of the Silk Road.

Belt and Road Initiative alias Chinese Dream: How Are the Cards Dealt for This Game?

2021 ◽  
pp. 2150014
Author(s):  
Michaela Staníčková ◽  
Lenka Fojtíková
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
Policy Formation ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Xi Jinping ◽  
Trading Partners ◽  
Road Project ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Ancient Silk Road

An old Chinese proverb says, “if you want to be rich, build a path”. The People’s Republic of China (from now on, China) has already verified this proverb’s validity in the old Silk Road. The oldest and most famous trade route in history has managed to help China and the surrounding region reach an imaginary peak in its time. Today, after centuries of unrest, wars, economic decline, and international isolation, China is once again building a path to help it return to the world’s most developed nations, the New Silk Road, respectively the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI has been defined as “the most eye-catching and possibly the one with the longest-term significance” (Ferdinand, 2017) [“Westward Ho — The China Dream and ‘One Belt, One Road’: Chinese Foreign Policy under Xi Jinping,” in Weiqing Song, ed., China’s Relations with Central and Eastern Europe: From “Old Comrades” to New Partners (London: Routledge, 2017), pp. 1–18]. The Silk Road project was introduced in 2013 by the Chinese President Xi Jinping in response to the economic crisis and the subsequent effort to find new markets and trading partners. The BRI restores the idea of the ancient Silk Road. The BRI is thus the result of a changed approach to foreign policy and the idea of opening up China. However, this policy cannot be perceived only as economic cooperation, but a well-thought-out Chinese foreign policy to expand its influence not only in Asia. The Sinocentric view of the world is thus one of the fundamental aspects of Chinese foreign policy formation. What will the country have to deal with in the future and, above all, what can we expect from China? This paper aims to provide insights into the visions proposed by the BRI, i.e. to capture the main milestones in the current development of the BRI, detailed analysis of its nature, and its current situation and implementation.

Reviving the Ancient Silk Road: China's New Diplomatic Initiative

2014 ◽  
Vol 06 (03) ◽  
pp. 5-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
John WONG ◽  
Liang Fook LYE
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Xi Jinping ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Maritime Silk Road ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The Silk Road

Chinese President Xi Jinping has pursued a proactive foreign policy to strengthen ties with its neighbours. In particular, Xi has proposed two major initiatives, i.e. the Silk Road Economic Belt (an overland route) and the Maritime Silk Road of the 21st Century (a maritime route), that leverage on China's economic strengths. Nevertheless, China will have to contend with the interests of other major powers as well as its own lack of soft power in its implementation.

scholarly journals One Belt One Road Project: Harmonization of Russia’s and China’s Long-tTrm Interests

2019 ◽  
pp. 89-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. P. Sukhodolov ◽  
I. V. Anokhov
Keyword(s):  
Silk Road ◽  
Transport Systems ◽  
Northern Sea Route ◽  
One Belt One Road ◽  
The World ◽  
Road Project ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
The One ◽  
The Silk Road

The article aims at evaluating the One Belt One Road project implemented by China that will define long-term trajectories of the world trade and finance development as well as prospects of Russia’s participation in this project. It seems that the project under consideration is not a full alternative to the existing nowadays world system of railroad and sea shipping both from the viewpoint of the shipping cost and the scope of investment required. A possibility of full-scale refocusing of Russia’s transport systems (the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Northern Sea Route) on the One Belt One Road project is not currently obvious, thus, one cannot state with certainty Russia’s role in this project. Besides, implementing this project results in building in Eurasia a China-centric economy system that does not coincide with the structures built by Russia, i.e. the Eurasian Economic Union, the Customs Union and other ones. At the same time, the One Belt One Road project seems to have no alternatives. None of the other countries has proposed a project that can be compared with the One Belt One Road one in terms of being large-scale, having a global impact as well as long-term effects. It is believed, that after the implementation of the project is complete, the technological and social differences between Europe’s and China’s potentials, which were the reason for shipping goods from Southeast Asia to Europe over the past centuries, will be reduced to a significant extent. In terms of this the China-centric world will have to provide different noneconomic reasons for its existence, i.e. provide the world with new values and meanings of the postindustrial world. In this context Russia’s participating in the One Belt One Road project may appear to be necessary: Russia can act as a project’s security operator, a mediator between China and the countries who are participants of the Silk Road Economic Belt in cases where their interests collide. Russia can also generate values and meanings of economic processes. The safe transportation routes Russia has, i.e. the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Northern Sea Route as well as long-term friendly relations with the countries-participants of the Silk Road Economic Belt and Russia’s being experienced in harmonizing different interests can become the key aspects contributing to success of this project.

scholarly journals IMPORTANCE OF THE SILK ROAD AND THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT PROJECT

THE BULLETIN ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 389 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-103
Author(s):  
A.Yu. Baltabayeva ◽  
A. Abubakirova ◽  
А.О. Syzdykova
Keyword(s):  
Silk Road ◽  
Asia Pacific ◽  
Economic Relations ◽  
Environmental Threats ◽  
Transport Project ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Transportation Route ◽  
The Silk Road

The interaction of different political, economic, historical and cultural dynamics of societies play an important role in the emergence of civilizations. The interaction of these dynamics with each other was realized by means of transportation due to reasons such as trade, migration, war, diplomacy. Transportation routes have been the most important element that provides the relationship of space between people and societies through the means that have developed in the historical process. The factor that makes the transportation route valuable and lasting depends on its geopolitical and geostrategic position, on ensuring that the societies carry out their social and economic relations safely. In this context, the oldest and most valuable transportation route in human history is the Silk Road, which covers a large geography from Europe to Asia to Asia to Africa, where many ancient civilizations were born. Along with the increase in the importance of energy resources in recent years, the importance of the Silk Road has increased as a result of the growing role of the countries concentrated in the region along the Silk Road in the world economy. On September 7, 2013, Chinese President XI Jinping delivered an important speech at Nazarbayev University in Astana, calling on China and Central Asia to join the creation of a new "silk road Economic belt". According to some researchers, this project covers the European economic zone from China and the Eurasia and Asia-Pacific economy corridor. China's project to revive the Silk Road has emerged as a result of China's economic and political-based regional and global expectations and concerns, rather than being a utopian initiative. In this study, new projects in the revitalization of the Silk Road were evaluated and the Silk Road Economic Belt project was studied. The environmental threats posed to the region by the world's largest transport project, which is being implemented with the participation of 65 countries, were discussed.

scholarly journals NORTHEAST ASIA STRATEGIC PLANNING PRACTICES

Federalism ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 156-171
Author(s):  
V. V. Mikheev ◽  
S. V. Ignatev
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Strategic Planning ◽  
Political Development ◽  
Northeast Asia ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
South Korean ◽  
Maritime Silk Road ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Main Components ◽  
The Silk Road

Currently, the topic of strategic planning is very relevant for Russia. This applies not only foreign policy, but also certain economic, social, and humanitarian areas, which are all crucial for the development of the country. In this regard, it is interesting to study the world experience, in particular the experience of the Asian region countries. The article is devoted to analysis of the main components of the strategic planning of socio-economic and political development in China, Japan, and South Korea. This study is carried out with the help of a comprehensive study of the fundamental foreign policy documents of the above countries. The authors pay special attention to analyzing the latest Chinese  initiatives of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road Initiative of the XXI century, their possible link with similar Japanese, Russian and South Korean initiatives, problems and difficulties in their implementation. The authors express their vision of practical opportunities and risks for Russia in the light of new trends in strategic planning in the countries of the studied region.

Chinese Economic Diplomacy before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 151-189
Author(s):  
E. I. Safronova
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
World Order ◽  
The United States ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Economic Diplomacy ◽  
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership ◽  
The Silk Road

The process of globalization has turned international economy into an arena of direct and indirect conflict of interests of various actors. It has also provided states with a new tool for their foreign policy activity — economic diplomacy. The paper focuses on the economic diplomacy of the People’s Republic of China, which not only has become the second important center of the world economy, but is starting to realize its increased capabilities, demonstrating ambitions of a new leader in international relations. The first section outlines the main features of the PRC’s economic diplomacy. The second section focuses on the key areas and specific mechanisms of the so-called incentive economic diplomacy. In this regard, the author emphasizes two trends: on the one hand, China aims at effectively integrating into existing international formats and institutions of global economic governance, but, on the other hand, it shows willingness to take the lead and initiate its own ambitious projects. The Silk Road Fund and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as well as the mega-project ‘The Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road’ are the most striking examples of the latter trend. Incentive economic diplomacy also serves as an important tool for strengthening the soft-power potential of the PRC in the international arena, especially in developing countries. At the same time, the author stresses that in recent years the PRC resorts more actively to the use of offensive forms of economic diplomacy, such as sanctions. This trend is examined in the third section of the paper. The international crisis provoked by SARS-CoV-2 pandemic became a moment of truth and a stress test for the new foreign policy system of the PRC. The fourth section analyses new challenges faced by China’s economic diplomacy in the context of the pandemic. These challenges have both an objective (the need for quick national economic recovery) and subjective dimensions. The latter implies the wholescale information war as the PRC and the countries of the collective West led by the United States started playing blame game. The author notes that, under these circumstances the PRC’s ‘COVID-19 diplomacy’ becomes more aggressive, which negatively affects the already tarnished national image. However, the author concludes, that although the current Chinese economic diplomacy generates rather negative sentiments in both developed and developing countries, it is exactly economic diplomacy that could, if properly used, help the PRC to establish itself as a leading actor in the new bipolar world order.

Prospects for matching strategic directions of the intergraphic development of the Economic Union and the Economic belt of the Silk road

2020 ◽  
pp. 22-45
Author(s):  
V. Zubenko ◽  
A. Massalimova
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Development ◽  
Donor Country ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Foreign Economic Policy ◽  
Industrial Cooperation ◽  
Economic Paradigm ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
Title One ◽  
The Silk Road

The accelerated economic development of China in recent decades has allowed it to accumulate the potential to multiply its influence in Eurasia and initiate a number of ambitious political and economic projects designed for the long term. The most important of these are the concepts of the Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB) and the 21st Century Marine Silk Road (UWB), put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping in autumn 2013 and subsequently combined under the title "One Belt — one way" as the strategy of China’s foreign economic policy, at least until 2022. Another factor behind the emergence of the SREB concept is the change in China’s foreign economic paradigm and its transition from a country attracting foreign direct investment to a donor country. Therefore, industrial cooperation is an important part of the SREB. In the negotiations of the EAEU countries with China on the integration of the EAEU and the SREB, it is necessary to take into account the interests of the industrial development of the EAEU countries, as well as the possible economic, political, operational and environmental risks that the process of interfacing with the SREB entails. It is necessary that the industrial cooperation of the EAEU countries and China be based on the principles of equality and mutual benefit.

Railway's Impacts on Modal Shift Potential Towards Intermodal Transportation: A Case Study in Lao PDR.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-123
Author(s):  
Klairung Ponanan ◽  
Wachira Wichitphongsa
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Lao Pdr ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Modal Shift ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Silk Road Economic Belt ◽  
The Silk Road

Chinese government has developed transport infrastructure rapidly under Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) strategy. The BRI strategy is China's economic development strategies for expanding trade and cultural influence towards countries in western and eastern regions, including ASEAN. The development of BRI strategy is consists of two main components i.e., (i) the Silk Road Economic Belt, follows the historical overland Silk Road through Central Asia, Iran, Turkey and eventually to Europe, and (ii) the Maritime Silk Road, originates in the South China Sea, passing through the Malacca Strait, the Indian Ocean, and the Red Sea and extending into the Mediterranean Sea (Chris & Elizabeth, 2015). Due to the BRI strategy, more than 6000 trains made the journey from China to Europe in 2018, which is an increase of 72% compared to 2017. China has sent more than 11,000 freight trains to Europe and back since the BRI strategy was announced in 2013. Railway networks have been constructed under the BRI strategy for connecting 48 Chinese cities with 42 cities in Europe through Asia. There are many railway infrastructures under the BRI strategy. The China – Laos railway (Vientiane–Boten railway) is one of project under the Silk Road Economic Belt that has been developed for serving as a key infrastructure for the economic corridor between the two countries. In nearly future, this railway will be helped to boost trade, investment and tourism for Lao PDR. and south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The Vientiane–Boten railway, especially transportation time will attract both travelers and Logistics Service Providers (LSP), which can be reduced time of journey compared with road mode. In this paper, modal shift potential of travelers and freight on Kunming-Bangkok Highway (R3A), AH2, AH8, AH9, AH10, AH12, AH13, and AH18 have been investigated by considering behavioral aspects of long distance travel. Keywords: Mode Split Model, Modal Shift, Vientiane–Boten railway, Travel Behaviour

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