Renewing BRI potential for growth

China says the multi-trillion-dollar transnational Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) global cooperation platform will become “more open” as it marks 10 years of the project by holding the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) in Beijing from tomorrow. “Continuing from this new starting point, BRI will demonstrate greater creativity and vitality, become more open and inclusive, and generate new opportunities for both China and the rest of the world,” says the white paper China’s State Council Information Office released last week. The document titled ‘The Belt and Road Initiative: A Key Pillar of the Global Community of Shared Future’ maintained that BRI, which has seen Beijing pour a trillion dollars into projects around the world since its launch in 2013, sought to provide a new platform for international economic cooperation, as well as generate new momentum to support growth. Representatives from 130 nations and 30 international organisations are expected to attend the high-profile event, which includes three high-level forums on connectivity, green development and digital economy. The forum is being held after a gap of four years at a time when the West, led by the US, is trying to counter Beijing’s growing political and economic clout across the globe, accusing China of “laying a debt trap” for the participating countries, and claiming that the infrastructure development deals signed under the initiative lack transparency. Recently, the US and India unveiled a plan to build the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), which seeks to connect India with several countries in the Middle East and Europe through a trade corridor consisting of ports, a railway and better roads. Announced on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in India, the IMEC is widely being seen as an alternative to Beijing’s modern-day Silk Road.