The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects aiming to link East Asia, Africa, Oceania, Latin America and Europe through physical infrastructure.

Actors:

• China: The main actor in this initiative, launched by President Xi Jinping, which will gain enormous economic and political power if the BRI is successful

• USA: Opposes the BRI due to the power it will bring China, and suspects it being a ‘Trojan horse’ for China’s military expansion. However it hasn’t been able to put forward a better vision for themselves

• Other States: 150 states have signed onto the BRI with a Memorandum of Understanding, even European states like Italy, Austria, and Portugal once part of it. This accounts for 40% of global GDP, and 2/3 of word population

Timeline:

• 2013 - XJP proposes the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road

• 2015 - Projects in Central Asia, South Asia and Indian Ocean begin

• 2016 - BRI included in UNGA resolutions, surge in MoUs

• 2017 - First BRI Forum held in China with over 100 states attending

• 2020 - Shift towards Digital Silk Roads projects with the COVID Pandemic

• 2023 - 10th anniversary of the BRI

Summary:

• The BRI encompasses over 140 countries, involving trillions of dollars in infrastructure investments (railways, ports, motorways, and digital networks)

• China’s goals include expanding trading routes, securing energy supplies, and increasing its geopolitical influence

• Overland and maritime traded is facilitated by key economic corridors such as the China-Pakistan EC, and the New Eurasian Land Bridge

• Funding is provided through Chinese state banks, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the Silk Road Fund, raising concerns about debt sustainability for participating states

• Criticisms of environmental degradation, lack of transparency and labour rights violations in BRI projects

• BRI has sparked debates about China’s expanding influence, creating economic dependencies which leads to strategic competition with other major powers