In 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to his neighbors Kazakhstan and Indonesia, with the goal of creating a space for commercial and economic exchanges that favors regional development in about a millennium turn.
Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Ma Hui (4-D) addresses diplomats and academics at the opening of the International Symposium marking the tenth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative held July 7 in Havana, capital of Cuba , 2023. Photos: Joaquín Hernández Mena
Ten years later, the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road confirm the vitality of one of mankind’s oldest trade and economic corridors.
For over a decade, the BRI has been facilitating political dialogue, infrastructure development, free trade, capital movements, integration between peoples, and deepening cooperation and mutual understanding, according to the seminar event organized by the Chinese Embassy in Havana , which included diplomatic representatives from Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Egypt as well as guests from Cuban units and Asian businessmen based in the Antilles country.
His Excellency the Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Ma Hui said that today the BRI connects more than 150 countries and 32 international organizations and has generated nearly $1 billion in investments. In its vicinity, more than three thousand projects have been developed and almost 40 million people have been lifted out of poverty.
He mentioned several examples of successful projects, including the China-Kazakhstan (Lianyungang) logistics cooperation base, which has become a nerve center for exports from that country and the Asia-Pacific region; and the Jakarta-Bandung bullet train in Indonesia, which will cover 142 kilometers in about 40 minutes and represents a major step forward for economic development, infrastructure and logistics in the region.
Ma Hui also referred to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CEPEC), information later augmented by His Excellency Shahbaz M. Malik, the Pakistani Ambassador to Cuba, who stated that the experience also had positive implications for Iran, Afghanistan and India, the Central Asian republics and the region in general.
The CPEC is a 3,218-kilometer route consisting of highways, railways, oil pipelines and seaports that “passes through Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan province and connects western China’s Xinjiang province of Kashgar to the rest of the world,” according to The Diplomat stated that the biggest benefits for his country are in the areas of energy, agriculture, development infrastructure and local employment.
The CPEC projects “could create jobs for 70,000 Pakistanis by 2030 and are expected to create 0.7 million jobs in the future,” he said.
For his part, the Chinese representative recalled the experience of the Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone established jointly with Egypt, which led to the creation of more than 50,000 new jobs for the African country.
In his speech, His Excellency the Egyptian Ambassador HE Maher El-Adawya added that besides the development project for the important port that provides access to the Suez Canal (Port Said), there are other projects that his country is carrying out jointly with China including the construction of the new administrative capital east of Cairo and the transformation of Ain Sokhha into a major economic, commercial and logistics hub.
His Excellency Ma Hui stressed that the initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean, where 21 countries and several projects are involved, today boasts a photovoltaic solar park in the Mariel Special Development Zone, a free trade agreement between China and Ecuador, as well as the extension of the agreement between your country and Argentina Agreed Currency Exchange Agreement.
More than 2,000 years ago, Ma Hui said, our ancestors opened the land Silk Road connecting Asia, Europe and Africa, and the sea Silk Road connecting East and West, and opened a new window for friendly exchanges between countries and scriptures opened a new chapter of human development and progress.
The current proposal follows the principle of joint negotiation, building and sharing. He defends the idea of ”discussing the issues amongst everyone” and invites people to hold hands and break down walls. “Non-cooperation is the greatest risk and underdevelopment is the greatest uncertainty,” he said.
China remains the economy with the best development momentum, MaHui said, and will continue to think about and plan to build a new development pattern together, including building the One Belt and One Road Initiative, in which cooperation in environmental, digital and digital areas are maintained. and innovative and the participating countries are offered market, investment and growth opportunities: “In our case, this is a mandatory option to promote the stable and long-term cooperation of the initiative,” he emphasized.
The Chinese diplomat announced that he will receive the III. Belt and Road Forum on International Cooperation (October 2023) “to further deepen political trust with other countries, improve connectivity, promote the balanced development of trade, attract the participation of multilateral cooperation organizations and. “ Financial institutions and create an important pattern for cultural exchanges, so that the Silk Road can become a real path of cooperation, development and happiness.”
“China will continue to promote world peace and progress through its own stability and development, while working hand in hand with all parties to build a community with a common future and create a better tomorrow,” Ambassador Hui concluded.
Academy assessments
Cuban expert Eduardo Regalado Florido, a specialist at the Center for International Policy Research, said that the Belt and Road Initiative “is a long-term project focused on working together to develop interconnectivity, infrastructure and a global trade network.”
For him, the experience can be understood as part of the Chinese conception of multilateralism, stressing that the purpose is to “promote local development, prosperity, stability, expand dialogue and promote mutual learning”.
No longer a multi-regional initiative, the project is a global initiative proposing civilizing dialogue, affirming, “It has become a high-quality public good initiated by China and built by all partners, bringing real benefits to participants. and their peoples.
Regalado Florido recognized that the original idea “has grown qualitatively, incorporating the digital, the environmental, the spatial, the sanitary, and the cultural. (…) The Belt and Road Initiative strengthens the construction of a multipolar world aimed at building a just order and governance that meets the needs of development and peace,” he concluded.