The Belt and Road Initiative
The Belt and Road Initiative – China’s proposal to cooperate with other countries in building a Silk Road Economic Belt and a 21st-entury Maritime Silk Road – was unveiled by President Xi Jinping during his visits to Central and Southeast Asia in September and October 2013. The countries and regions to be involved by the initiative are mainly located in Asia (east, southeast, south, west and central Asia) and central and eastern Europe.
The initiative focuses on policy coordination, connectivity of infrastructure and facilities, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and closer people-to-people ties through a consultative process and joint efforts, with the goal of bringing benefits to all. It aims to build a community of shared interests and responsibility with a shared future. As it accords with the common interests of all parties concerned, and the trend of regional and global cooperation, the initiative has received warm response from the countries along the routes.
By the end of 2018, China had signed more than 150 agreements with 106 countries and 29 international organizations on joining hands to advance this initiative, covering the Asia-Europe continent, Africa, Latin American and the Caribbean region, and South Pacific. It has conducted mechanism-based industrial-capacity cooperation with more than 30 countries, promoting the formation of new ground led by the initiative.
The UN General Assembly and Security Council have also made reference to the initiative in some of their resolutions. One of the resolutions of the General Assembly called on the international community to reinforce regional economic cooperation through translating the initiative into action.
“一帶一路”倡議
“一帶一路”是“絲綢之路經濟帶”和“21世紀海上絲綢之路”的簡稱。2013年9月和10月，習近平出訪中亞和東南亞時，分別提出了與相關國家共同建設“絲綢之路經濟帶”和“21世紀海上絲綢之路”的倡議。該倡議主要涵蓋東亞、東南亞、南亞、西亞、中亞和中東歐等國家和地區，以實現“政策溝通、設施聯通、貿易暢通、資金融通、民心相通”為主要內容，以“共商、共建、共享”為原則，以“利益共同體、責任共同體、命運共同體”為目標,實實在在造福沿線國家和人民。 “一帶一路”倡議符合有關各方共同利益，順應地區和全球合作潮流，得到了沿線國家的積極響應。截至2018年年底，中國已與106個國家和29個國際組織簽署了超過150份共建“一帶一路”協議，簽署范圍自亞歐大陸拓展至非洲、拉美和加勒比地區、南太平洋地區；同30多個國家開展機制化產能合作，推動形成了以“一帶一路”為引領的對外開放新格局。“一帶一路”倡議已被寫入聯合國大會、安理會等重要決議，聯合國安理會通過的第2344號決議，呼吁國際社會通過“一帶一路”建設加強區域經濟合作。