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The Belt & Road Initiative
Facts, Initiators, Opportunities
FACTS
The BRI is a major driver of global project activity. Roads, railways, ports and other infrastructure are realized to connect Asia, Africa and Europe. Its immense scale presents a unique set of opportunities for all participating and contributing parties. The Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) supports BRI projects in financial terms. As a multilateral institution, the AIIB is owned by a membership of 126 countries. Germany is invested with US$ 4.5 billion (total capital stock of US$ 100 billion), which makes it the fourth largest stakeholder after China, India and Russia, and the biggest non-regional shareholder. Since January 2016, the bank has committed US$ 5.4 billion to 31 projects.
Beyond many high-level discussions, BRI is up and running with concrete projects either accomplished or underway. For instance, COSCO’s investment in the Port of Piraeus (Greece) resulted in an increase from 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to 3.7 million TEUs, a boost of over US$ 700 million for the Greek economy, adding 10,000 jobs. Moreover, the Budapest–Belgrade railway connecting the capital cities of Hungary and Serbia - with US$ 2.89 billion and 350 km high-speed rail lines, is part of the Budapest–Belgrade–Skopje–Athens railway link in Central and Southeast Europe, interconnecting the Piraeus port in Greece with the "heart" of Europe. For an overview of several other BRI projects, please click here.
INITIATORS
Formerly known and introduced as “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR) by PRC President Xi Jinping in 2013, the “Belt & Road Initiative” (BRI) aims to connect Asia, Europe and Africa along several economic cooperation corridors and crucial maritime ports. Its original term reflects the overland ‘Silk Road Economic Belt’ and the ‘21st-Century Maritime Silk Road’, the two major corridors linking Europe with China through countries across Eurasia and the Indian Ocean. In many publications and media coverage, the BRI is also referred to as the “New Silk Road” / “Neue Seidenstraße”. Even Africa and Oceania are part of the BRI, hence, the mainly used term of “Belt & Road Initiative” allows a wider interpretation of several trade corridors (see BRI Map) and emphasizes the following key areas of cooperation:
- coordinating development opportunities and policies
- strengthening investment and trade relations beyond regional borders
- deepening social and cultural exchange for sustainable prosperity of all parties
In Europe, the so called “Investment Plan for Europe” or “Junker Plan” - an initiative by the EU to remove bottlenecks to investment in Europe - has been discussed to be integrated and linked with the BRI. Both initiatives aim to foster easier economic trade & investment opportunities. However, the “Investment Plan for Europe” focuses mainly on developing the European Single Market, whereas BRI’s sphere of influence becomes more and more relevant for Europe’s foreign trade relations with strong partners along the “Neue Seidenstraße”.
OPPORTUNITIES
The BRI is posing important opportunities for Germany's high-tech industry. The potential to contribute and capitalize on its innovation power - alongside existing and new technologies - is huge and spans into a gigantic economic zone between Asia and Europe.
“China’s Belt and Road Initiative has triggered the impulse for modernization in the areas far beyond Asia.”
Volker Treier,
CEO, Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce
Sources:
European Council of Foreign Relations
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