The “One Belt, One Road” initiative has become an important platform for China and the world to jointly build global economic cooperation.
Since it was proposed in 2013, the “One Belt, One Road” initiative has become an important platform for China and the world to jointly build global economic cooperation. In just ten years, it has achieved remarkable results, injected new impetus into global economic development, and become an important force in promoting regional cooperation.
Building Together: The Transformation of Infrastructure
As of the end of June 2023, the “Belt and Road” initiative has achieved fruitful results in infrastructure construction.
The "Silk Road Shipping" route has expanded to 117 ports in 43 countries around the world. China-Europe trains connect more than 200 cities in 25 European countries. At the same time, China has signed bilateral air transport agreements with 104 co-building countries and achieved direct air flights with 57 co-building countries.
Among them, China-Europe freight trains closely connect the main areas in the hinterland of Asia and Europe through 86 operating lines with a speed of 120 kilometers per hour. As of the end of June 2023, China-Europe freight trains have run a total of 74,000 trains, transporting nearly 7 million TEUs with more than 50,000 categories of goods, involving 53 categories such as complete automobiles, machinery and equipment, and electronic products, with a total value of more than 3,000 One hundred million U.S. dollars.
This dense transportation network not only provides efficient logistics channels, but also creates abundant trade and investment opportunities for countries along the route.
Win-win sharing: a leap forward in economic and trade cooperation
Over the past decade, the level of economic and trade cooperation between China and co-building countries has continued to deepen. From 2013 to 2022, the total import and export volume between China and co-building countries reached a total of US$19.1 trillion, with an average annual growth rate of 6.4%.
The cumulative two-way investment with co-building countries exceeds 380 billion US dollars. Among them, China's foreign direct investment exceeded US$240 billion, the joint-state investment in China exceeded US$140 billion, and nearly 67,000 new companies were established in China. This shows the strong willingness for bilateral investment and the potential for economic and trade cooperation.
At the same time, the cumulative value of newly signed contracts and completed turnover of China's jointly constructed national contract projects reached US$2 trillion and US$1.3 trillion respectively.
Significant financial investment cooperation
In order to better support the Belt and Road Initiative projects, financial investment cooperation has also achieved remarkable results.
As of the end of June 2023, the Silk Road Fund has signed a total of 75 investment projects, with a committed investment amount of approximately US$22.04 billion. The 106 members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have invested a total of US$43.6 billion and approved 227 investment projects, providing strong support for infrastructure construction and other important projects in the region.
At the same time, as of the end of 2022, the balance of China Export-Import Bank's "Belt and Road" loans reached 2.2 trillion yuan, covering more than 130 co-building countries. The loan projects have attracted more than 400 billion U.S. dollars in investment and more than 2 trillion U.S. dollars in trade. The China Development Bank has directly provided high-quality financial services to more than 1,300 "Belt and Road" projects, effectively playing a leading role in development finance and bringing together various domestic and foreign funds to participate in the joint construction of the "Belt and Road".
Rich and colorful cooperation in the fields of humanities and science and technology
The "Belt and Road" initiative is not limited to the economic field, it has also achieved remarkable results in cultural exchanges, scientific and technological cooperation and other aspects.
As of the end of June 2023, China has signed cooperation documents in the field of culture and tourism with 144 co-building countries; at the same time, it has signed agreements on mutual recognition of higher education academic degrees with 45 co-building countries and regions, providing a basis for cultural exchanges and common development. A solid foundation was laid.
Science and technology is an important driving force for social development and is also a key area of cooperation between China and co-building countries.
As of the end of June 2023, China has signed the "Intergovernmental Agreement on Science and Technology Cooperation" with more than 80 co-building countries, and the number of members of the "Belt and Road" Alliance of International Scientific Organizations (ANSO) has reached 58. At the same time, as of the end of 2022, China has signed a "Digital Silk Road" cooperation memorandum of understanding with 17 countries, an e-commerce cooperation memorandum of understanding with 30 countries, and an "On Strengthening Investment Cooperation in the Digital Economy" with 18 countries and regions. Memorandum of Understanding", demonstrating strong potential for international cooperation and vitality of scientific and technological innovation.
The “Belt and Road” initiative not only provides new development opportunities for participating countries, but also opens a new chapter for global economic development and cultural exchanges. Through continued efforts and cooperation, the Belt and Road Initiative will continue to contribute to global prosperity and development in the future, and jointly create a more open, diverse and prosperous future.