14/08/2019
Participants pose for photos at the New Inclusive Asia Dialogue in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Aug. 14, 2019. The China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was formulated with economic development agenda through increased connectivity, infrastructure and capacity building, according to academics and experts at the New Inclusive Asia Dialogue here on Wednesday. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) — The China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was formulated with economic development agenda through increased connectivity, infrastructure and capacity building, according to academics and experts at a conference here on Wednesday.
Speaking at the New Inclusive Asia Dialogue, multiple experts said BRI, as a flexible economic oriented initiative, stood in contrast with attempts by certain country to piece together its own trade network, which was described as being focused on political agendas.
Dr S Mahmud Ali, an associate fellow with the University of Malaya’s Institute of China Studies, said countries like Malaysia, which aspired to reach developed nation status, had recognized the real gains to be had from participation in BRI.
Mahmud said once several on-going BRI related projects were completed in the country, the country’s economic capacity would be greatly boosted.
Malaysia does play a significant role and substantial amounts of Chinese investments funding projects will boost Malaysia’s productivity, total production capacity, its ability to export and produce good that will rise quite dramatically once these projects are completed, he said.
Proposed by China in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st century Maritime Silk Road, which aims at building trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road.
Chairman of the Committee of International Information of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Kazakhstan Timur Shaimergenov said that the flexible, economically focused BRI had gained strong support due to the inclusive approach taken by China.
“The Belt and Road Initiative is a flexible economic oriented project. It does not come with political pressure but instead it is about giving participating countries the opportunity to take advantage of economic opportunities.”
Criticism against BRI has taken on a political dimension and they are completely ignoring that while BRI started as a Chinese initiative, it has really become a Eurasian initiative,” he said.
Olga Kuznetsova, a professor with the Moscow Lomonosov State University said infrastructure development had the potential to benefit countries along BRI route, calling on countries to formulate clear plans to take advantage of the economic spillover.
“Russia is interested in the development of Eurasian transport corridors and invests in the implementation of projects to create them,” she said.
Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Bai Tian said China had made it clear that it would continue to be a supporter of fair and equitable international trade and globalization, especially in the backdrop of unilateral protectionism.
“We look forward to joining hands with Asian countries to promote trade and investment facilitation, to accelerate the process of regional free trade zone, and to deepen regional and sub-regional cooperation,” he said.
Hosted by the Center for New Inclusive Asia, a Malaysian based think tank, the two-day dialogue aims to foster better understanding of connectivity as a means to promote inclusive growth in Asia, bringing together prominent scholars, senior government officials and corporate leaders from some 10 countries and regions.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in 21st Century Maritime Silk Road,, africa, Asia, Asian countries, Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), BRI, capacity building, Center for New Inclusive Asia, Chairman of the Committee of International Information of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Kazakhstan, China-proposed, Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia, designed, Economic development, Eurasian transport corridors, Europe, Institute of China Studies, Malaysia, Moscow Lomonosov State University, New Inclusive Asia Dialogue, Russia, Silk Road, Silk Road Economic Belt, Uncategorized, University of Malaya |
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08/08/2019
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Food giant Nestle (NESN.S) on Thursday started selling Starbucks-branded (SBUX.O) coffee in mainland China, seeking to tap growth in a market where it says coffee consumption per capita remains low compared to global standards.
Nestle last year paid $7.15 billion for exclusive rights to sell the U.S. chain’s coffees and teas globally, and began selling Starbucks-labelled products in Europe, Asia and Latin America in February.
The world’s largest food company will start selling 21 Starbucks-branded capsule and instant coffee products on Chinese e-commerce platforms like Alibaba’s (BABA.N) Tmall and JD.com (JD.O), as well as to offices and hotels in tier-1 cities, both companies said.
“We believe China is the most exciting market in general but especially for coffee because… per capita cup consumption is quite low as compared to Asia,” said Rashid Aleem Qureshi, Nestle’s chief executive officer for the Greater China region.
“Right now the overall soluble coffee in China is growing between 3-5% (a year) and we believe that by bringing this exciting new business opportunity we should be able to grow faster than that,” he said, referring to a category that includes capsule and instant coffee.
Nestle’s move comes as the Swiss company experienced a slower first-half growth in China, its second-largest market, where other categories like mainstream baby foods have struggled compared to pricier options.
China’s per capita coffee consumption is about 6 cups a year, compared to 400 in Japan and 300 in South Korea, Nestle said.
The partnership with Starbucks would help Nestle add a premium coffee option to the range of products it already sells in China, such as Nescafe instant coffee range and Nespresso capsule coffees, Qureshi said.
Starbucks China CEO Belinda Wong said the Nestle deal would open two new avenues to sell its products in China, where it has been investing heavily in its store network and delivery amid tougher competition from local startups.
Source: Reuters
Posted in Alibaba’s (BABA.N), Asia, China alert, coffee, companies, Europe, Greater China region, hotels, Japan, JD.com (JD.O), Latin America, Nescafe, Nespresso, Nestle, offices, selling, South Korea, starbucks, Starbucks-branded, Swiss company, tier-1 cities, Tmall, Uncategorized |
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04/08/2019
Rocket artilleries fire in a military presentation in Korla, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Aug. 3, 2019. The opening ceremony for the competitions hosted by China as part of the International Army Games 2019 was held on Saturday in Korla, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The Chinese army will host four contests in areas such as infantry combat vehicles and weapon repair. Teams coming from 12 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and South America will take part. (Photo by Wang Junqiang/Xinhua)
URUMQI, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) — The opening ceremony for the competitions hosted by China as part of the International Army Games 2019 was held on Saturday in Korla, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The Chinese army will host four contests in areas such as infantry combat vehicles and weapon repair. Teams coming from 12 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and South America will take part.
During the period of the competitions, cultural exchanges and equipment exhibitions will be held.
The Chinese army has taken part in the games since 2014 and became a host in 2017.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in africa, Asia, China competitions, Chinese army, competitions, cultural exchanges, equipment exhibitions, Europe, Int'l Army Games, Korla, South America, Uncategorized, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region |
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31/07/2019
- China’s Wang Yi and US’ Mike Pompeo at summit in Thailand to sell their visions of future for Southeast Asia
- Analysts expect pragmatism from Asean as world’s two biggest economic powers play diplomatic game
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) greets his Philippine counterpart Teodoro Locsin at the Asean meeting in Bangkok, Thailand. Photo: Xinhua
China and the United States are on a mission to strengthen ties with allies and expand their influence in Southeast Asia this week as their trade war enters a second year.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived for a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Bangkok on Wednesday to promote the US-led Indo-Pacific strategy, while Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi touched down a day earlier to advance Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
The US Department of State said Pompeo’s trip was aimed at deepening Washington’s “long-standing alliances and vibrant bilateral relations with these countries, and [to] reaffirm our commitment to Asean, which is central to our vision for the Indo-Pacific region”.
In Beijing on Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that while their meeting was yet to be set, Wang and Pompeo were expected to meet and talk “frankly” about bilateral relations.
“I think that it is indeed necessary for China and the United States to maintain communication, as the two countries face many situations,” Hua said. “The issues would be communicated frankly”.
The Indo-Pacific strategy is a military and economic framework to contain China’s expansion into the Pacific and Indian oceans, and give an alternative to Beijing’s flagship belt and road development programme.
En route to Thailand, Pompeo said that after a stalled start to US Indo-Pacific policy during the Barack Obama administration, Washington’s strategy was well on its way to bearing fruit for the US and its allies.
South China Sea tensions, US-China trade war loom over Asean summit
“We have watched these coalitions build out,” he said.
Pompeo dismissed claims that China’s sphere of influence among Asean members was growing, saying such speculation was “not factually accurate”.
“[Asean countries] are looking for partners that are going to help them build out their economies and to take good care of their people,” he said, pledging greater engagement from President Donald Trump’s administration.
Pompeo was expected to sit down on Friday with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts to consolidate their trilateral alliance in the region.
He was also expected to hold talks with Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai that day.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at Asean in Thailand. Photo: EPA-EFE
Meanwhile, Wang launched his belt and road pitch to his Cambodian, Philippine and Indonesian counterparts after he arrived in Thailand for the gathering, which ends on Saturday.
The belt and road projects are largely commercial and aimed at strengthening land and sea infrastructure linking Asia, Europe and Africa. But they raised suspicion in the West that they are aimed at eroding the US-led world order.
During his meeting with Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Wang said: “China is willing to have high-level exchanges with the Philippines, to deepen the mutual trust, and promote the Belt and Road Initiative [in the Philippines] … to accelerate the development of regional infrastructure.”
Can China’s trade boost with Asean help get the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership over the line?
This year’s Asean forum was taking place as countries were more receptive to Chinese initiatives, in part due to the unpredictability of the US administration, according to Rajeev Ranjan Charturvedy, a visiting fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
“Policy uncertainties under the Trump administration have already pushed some Asean countries towards China in ways that would have seemed unlikely a few years ago,” Charturvedy said.
Analysts said Trump’s “America first” approach shaped his Asean policy. The president had vowed to apply “punishments” to countries – including Asean member states – for contributing to the US trade deficit.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is talking to Asean counterparts at a time when they are receptive to China’s proposals, an analyst says. Photo: AFP
Trump was absent at the Asean summit in Singapore last year, leading to concerns that Washington’s commitment to Asia was declining.
Charturvedy said the Asean forum’s focus was about building constructive regionalism, but China’s attitudes to security could pose a challenge.
“[However] Asean countries clearly hope not to be forced to choose between the US and Chinese offers. Rather, they would like more freedom of choice while accommodating for a larger role for China in the region,” he said.
Clarita Carlos, a professor of political science at the University of the Philippines, suggested that Asean members would be pragmatic during the forum.
Robert Lighthizer warns Vietnam over trade deficit with US
They would try to find their own balance between the two major powers – as countries rather than a bloc – to try to maximise each state’s interests and advantages, Carlos said.
“Vietnam has a love-hate relationship with China, especially as a winner in the ongoing US-China trade war,” she said. “Singapore has close relations with China. There are also ups and downs in the relationship with China for Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia.”
Source: SCMP
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30/07/2019
BEIJING, July 29 (Xinhua) — The attempt of some Western countries to tarnish the image of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is doomed to fail, and the fight against terrorism and extremism in Xinjiang should be supported and respected, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said Monday.
Recently, ambassadors from 50 countries to the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) have sent a joint letter to the President of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to voice their support for China’s position on issues related to Xinjiang.
The 50 ambassadors, who are from countries including Russia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Cuba, have collectively stated for the first time that the counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures, including the establishment of vocational education and training centers, have effectively safeguarded basic human rights in Xinjiang, spokesperson Hua Chunying told a press briefing.
According to media reports, 24 members of the UNHRC have previously signed a letter criticizing China’s position on relevant issues.
“The 24 members, with a total population of no more than 600 million, are all developed Western countries, none of them being an Islamic or developing country. While of the 50 countries that support China are from Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe, with a total population of nearly 2 billion, 28 are members of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation, and their population is more than twice that of the 24 members that criticized China,” Hua said. “So it’s obvious who is right and who is wrong on the matter of Xinjiang,” she added.
Hua said many of the ambassadors who supported China’s Xinjiang policy have visited Xinjiang and witnessed the truth.
As the ambassadors pointed out, those who had visited Xinjiang found what they saw and heard was completely different from what was described in Western media reports, according to Hua.
“The ambassadors also appreciated China’s achievements in human rights, believed that Xinjiang’s establishment of vocational education and training centers, as well as other counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures, effectively guaranteed basic human rights and urged relevant countries to stop their unfounded accusations against China,” said the spokesperson.
“This fully shows that the international community has its fair judgment on the development of Xinjiang,” said Hua, adding that attempt to smear Xinjiang and put pressure on China in the name of “human rights” will never succeed.
Pointing out that the current problem in Xinjiang is the issue of counter-terrorism and extremism rather than religious and human rights issues, Hua said the counter-terrorism and de-radicalization struggle in Xinjiang deserve support, respect and understanding.
“Faced with severe threats of terrorism and extremism, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has taken a series of counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures according to law, including the establishment of vocational education and training centers,” said Hua, adding that those measures have turned the situation around.
“In almost three years, not a single violent or terrorist incident took place in Xinjiang. The region now enjoys social stability and unity among all ethnic groups. People there are living a happy life with a stronger sense of fulfillment and security. They endorse the government’s policies and measures wholeheartedly,” said the spokesperson.
Noting that many of the 24 countries that denounce China’s Xinjiang policy have been victims of terrorism, Hua said relevant people and officials from these 24 countries are welcome to visit Xinjiang to learn about Xinjiang’s counter-terrorism and de-radicalization experience.
Hua said China is working with all parties to ensure that multilateral human rights mechanisms stick to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. Human rights issues should be dealt with in an objective, fair and non-selective way. “We need to advance international human rights cause in a sound manner through constructive dialogue and cooperation.”
“We resolutely oppose any country’s act of using the Human Rights Council and other mechanisms to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs and wantonly criticize, smear and pressure others. We urge the relevant countries to correct their mistakes at once, not to politicize the relevant issue or practice double standards, and stop meddling in other countries’ domestic affairs,” she added.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in africa, Algeria, Asia, Cuba, double standards, Europe, extremism, Fight against terrorism, High Commissioner for Human Rights, Latin America, meddling, Organization of the Islamic Cooperation, Pakistan, respected, Russia, Saudi Arabia, supported, U.N. Human Rights Council, UN Charter, UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Uncategorized, United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), Xinjiang, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region |
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27/07/2019
GENEVA, July 27 (Xinhua) — Ambassadors from 50 countries to the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) have co-signed a letter to the President of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to voice their support for China’s position on issues related to its Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Earlier on July 12, a number of ambassadors in Geneva sent the joint letter to show their support for China, and as of Friday evening, more ambassadors had joined, the Chinese Mission to the UNOG revealed.
In a statement issued on Friday night, the Chinese mission said that some other countries had also expressed their support in separate letters or press statements.
In the joint letter, the ambassadors commend China for its economic and social progress, effective counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures, and strong guarantee of human rights.
They appreciate the opportunities provided by China for diplomatic envoys, officials of international organizations, and media professionals to visit Xinjiang, and point to the contrast between Xinjiang in the eyes of those who have visited it and the one portrayed by some western media.
The ambassadors also urge a certain group of countries to stop using uncorroborated information to make unfounded accusations against China.
“I was surprised that some people call these vocational training and education centers concentration or internment camps,” Vadim Pisarevich, deputy permanent representative of Belarus to the UNOG, told Xinhua.
“They’re nothing of the kind. They look like ordinary educational facilities and even I said that they are more than this because they provide life skills training to the students,” Pisarevich said.
They are “very useful institutions for addressing the problems of terrorism, extremism and separatism,” he said.
“Terrorism and extremism are an intractable challenge across the world. In the face of its grave threat, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region responded with a number of lawful steps, including setting up vocational education and training centers, to prevent and combat terrorism and extremism,” the Chinese Mission to the UNOG said in its statement.
“Facts speak louder than words, and justice cannot be overshadowed. The great diversity of countries co-signing the letter — from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, especially the OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation) — makes it clear that the international community has drawn a fair conclusion about Xinjiang’s human rights achievement and counter-terrorism and de-radicalization outcome,” the statement said.
“Those that seek to use human rights as an excuse to slander and pressure China have only themselves to deceive,” it added.
“We oppose any attempt to use human rights issues as a cover for interference in a country’s internal affairs. We urge those who are doing so to change course, refrain from politicization and double standards, and stop interfering in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights,” it said.
At a press conference on Friday, China’s Ambassador to the UNOG Chen Xu also rebuked some Western nations for slandering China over Xinjiang, noting that China doesn’t accept these “groundless accusations.”
Jamshed Khamidov, head of Tajikistan’s mission in Geneva, said his government opposes any attempts to use the Human Rights Council for particular political purposes, and efforts should be made to avoid any politicization of the Human Rights Council.
“We know the situation in the Xinjiang region. We know how much the government of China is doing … and what kind of measures were implemented in this region to support its peace, security and development,” he said.
In visits to the vocational training and education centers in Xinjiang’s Urumqi and Kashi, Zenon Mukongo Ngay, head of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s mission in Geneva, said he was impressed with the “level of development” in Xinjiang and how the people in the centers receive education for getting a job.
The Chinese mission also said that together with all parties, China is committed to promoting the healthy development of the international human rights cause by encouraging multilateral human rights institutions to stick to the purpose and principles of the UN Charter, handle human rights issues in an objective, impartial and non-selective manner, and engage in constructive dialogues and cooperation.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in 50 countries, africa, ambassadors, Asia, Ürümqi, China's position, Democratic Republic of Congo, Europe, extremism, Geneva, High Commissioner for Human Rights, human rights issues, Kashi, Latin America, OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation), President of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), support, Tajikistan, terrorism, U.N. Human Rights Council, UN Charter, Uncategorized, United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), Xinjiang, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region |
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22/07/2019
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – China will be able to place armed forces at a Cambodian naval base under a secret pact between the two nations, the Wall Street Journal said on Sunday, although Cambodian officials denied such a deal had been struck.
The agreement, reached this spring but not made public, gives China exclusive access to part of Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand, the Journal said, citing U.S. and allied officials familiar with the matter.
Such an arrangement would boost China’s ability to assert contested territorial claims and economic interests in the South China Sea, challenging U.S. allies in Southeast Asia.
Chinese and Cambodian officials denied such a pact existed, the Journal said.
“This is the worst-ever made up news against Cambodia,” Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen told the pro-government news site Fresh News on Monday.
“No such thing could happen because hosting foreign military bases is against the Cambodian constitution.”
Cambodian defence ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat told Reuters the report was “made up and baseless”.
In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said, “As I understand it, the Cambodia side denied this.”
But he declined to respond to repeated questions whether China also denied the report.
“China and Cambodia are traditionally friendly neighbours,” Geng told a news briefing.
“We have cooperated in various areas. Our cooperation is open, transparent, and mutually beneficial and equal. I hope the relevant parties do not overinterpret it.”
Hun Sen’s strongest regional ally, China has poured billions of dollars in development assistance and loans into Cambodia through two-way frameworks and its Belt and Road initiative.
The initiative, unveiled by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, aims to bolster a sprawling network of land and sea links throughout Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
It has attracted a flood of Chinese commercial ventures in Cambodia, including casinos and special economic zones.
This month the U.S. Defense Department suggested China may be attempting to gain a military foothold in Cambodia, in a letter to Cambodia asking why the nation had turned down an offer to repair a naval base.
In a statement, the State Department urged Cambodia to reject such an arrangement, saying the nation had a “constitutional commitment to its people to pursue an independent foreign policy”.
It added, “We are concerned that any steps by the Cambodian government to invite a foreign military presence in Cambodia would threaten the coherence and centrality of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in coordinating regional developments, and disturb peace and stability in Southeast Asia.”
Cambodia denied reports last November that China had been lobbying it since 2017 for a naval base that could host frigates, destroyers and other vessels of the People’s Liberation Army Navy.
Source: Reuters
Posted in africa, armed Chinese forces, Asia, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Beijing, Cambodia, Cambodian Prime Minister, deal, denies, destroyers, Europe, Fresh News, frigates, Gulf of Thailand, Middle East, naval base, People’s Liberation Army Navy, President Xi Jinping, Ream Naval Base, Southeast Asia, U.S. Defense Department, Uncategorized |
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08/07/2019
- Settlements along the route linking Europe and Asia thrived by providing accommodation and services for countless traders
- Formally established during the Han dynasty, it was a 19th-century German geographer who coined the term Silk Road
The ruins of a fortified gatehouse and customs post at Yunmenguan Pass, in China’s Gansu province. Photo: Alamy
We have a German geographer, cartographer and explorer to thank for the name of the world’s most famous network of transcontinental trade routes.
Formally established during the Han dynasty, in the first and second centuries BC, it wasn’t until 1877 that Ferdinand von Richthofen coined the term Silk Road (historians increasingly favour the collective term Silk Routes).
The movement of merchandise between China and Europe had been taking place long before the Han arrived on the scene but it was they who employed troops to keep the roads safe from marauding nomads.
Commerce flourished and goods as varied as carpets and camels, glassware and gold, spices and slaves were traded; as were horses, weapons and armour.
Merchants also moved medicines but they were no match for the bubonic plague, which worked its way west along the Silk Road before devastating huge swathes of 14th century Europe.
What follows are some of the countless kingdoms, territories, (modern-day) nations and cities that grew rich on the proceeds of trade, taxes and tolls.
China
A watchtower made of rammed earth at Dunhuang, a desert outpost at the crossroads of two major Silk Road routes in China’s northwestern Gansu province. Photo: Alamy
Marco Polo worked in the Mongol capital, Khanbaliq (today’s Beijing), and was struck by the level of mercantile activity.
The Venetian gap-year pioneer wrote, “Every day more than a thousand carts loaded with silk enter the city, for a great deal of cloth of gold and silk is woven here.”
Light, easy to transport items such as paper and tea provided Silk Road traders with rich pickings, but it was China’s monopoly on the luxurious shimmering fabric that guaranteed huge profits.
So much so that sneaking silk worms out of the empire was punishable by death.
The desert outpost of Dunhuang found itself at the crossroads of two major Silk Road trade arteries, one leading west through the Pamir Mountains to Central Asia and another south to India.
Built into the Great Wall at nearby Yunmenguan are the ruins of a fortified gatehouse and customs post, which controlled the movement of Silk Road caravans.
Also near Dunhuang, the Mogao Caves contain one of the richest collections of Buddhist art treasures anywhere in the world, a legacy of the route to and from the subcontinent.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan’s mountainous terrain was an inescapable part of the Silk Road, until maritime technologies would become the area’s undoing. Photo: Shutterstock
For merchants and middlemen hauling goods through Central Asia, there was no way of bypassing the mountainous lands we know today as Afghanistan.
Evidence of trade can be traced back to long before the Silk Road – locally mined lapis lazuli stones somehow found their way to ancient Egypt, and into Tutankhamun’s funeral mask, created in 1323BC.
Jagged peaks, rough roads in Tajikistan, roof of the world
Besides mercantile exchange, the caravan routes were responsible for the sharing of ideas and Afghanistan was a major beneficiary. Art, philosophy, language, science, food, architecture and technology were all exchanged, along with commercial goods.
In fact, maritime technology would eventually be the area’s undoing. By the 15th century, it had become cheaper and more convenient to transport cargo by sea – a far from ideal development for a landlocked region.
Iran
The Ganjali Khan Complex, in Iran. Photo: Shutterstock
Thanks to the Silk Road and the routes that preceded it, the northern Mesopotamian region (present-day Iran) became China’s closest trading partner. Traders rarely journeyed the entire length of the trail, however.
Merchandise was passed along by middlemen who each travelled part of the way and overnighted in caravanserai, fortified inns that provided accommodation, storerooms for goods and space for pack animals.
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With so many wheeler-dealers gathering in one place, the hostelries developed into ad hoc marketplaces.
Marco Polo writes of the Persian kingdom of Kerman, where craftsmen made saddles, bridles, spurs and “arms of every kind”.
Today, in the centre of Kerman, the former caravanserai building forms part of the Ganjali Khan Complex, which incorporates a bazaar, bathhouse and mosque.
Uzbekistan
A fort in Khiva, Uzbekistan. Photo: Alamy
The double-landlocked country boasts some of the Silk Road’s most fabled destinations. Forts, such as the one still standing at Khiva, were built to protect traders from bandits; in fact, the city is so well-preserved, it is known as the Museum under the Sky.
The name Samarkand is also deeply entangled with the history of the Silk Road.
The earliest evidence of silk being used outside China can be traced to Bactria, now part of modern Uzbekistan, where four graves from around 1500BC-1200BC contained skeletons wrapped in garments made from the fabric.
Three thousand years later, silk weaving and the production and trade of textiles remain one of Samarkand’s major industries.
Georgia
A street in old town of Tbilisi, Georgia. Photo: Alamy
Security issues in Persia led to the opening up of another branch of the legendary trade route and the first caravan loaded with silk made its way across Georgia in AD568.
Marco Polo referred to the weaving of raw silk in “a very large and fine city called Tbilisi”.
Today, the capital has shaken off the Soviet shackles and is on the cusp of going viral.
Travellers lap up the city’s monasteries, walled fortresses and 1,000-year-old churches before heading up the Georgian Military Highway to stay in villages nestling in the soaring Caucasus Mountains.
Public minibuses known as marshrutka labour into the foothills and although the vehicles can get cramped and uncomfortable, they beat travelling by camel.
Jordan
Petra, in Jordan. Photo: Alamy
The location of the Nabataean capital, Petra, wasn’t chosen by chance.
Savvy nomadic herders realised the site would make the perfect pit-stop at the confluence of several caravan trails, including a route to the north through Palmyra (in modern-day Syria), the Arabian peninsula to the south and Mediterranean ports to the west.
Huge payments in the form of taxes and protection money were collected – no wonder the most magnificent of the sandstone city’s hand-carved buildings is called the Treasury.
The Red Rose City is still a gold mine – today’s tourists pay a hefty
. The Nabataeans would no doubt approve.
Venice
Tourists crowd onto Venice’s Rialto Bridge. Photo: Alamy
Trade enriched Venice beyond measure, helping shape the Adriatic entrepot into the floating marvel we see today.
Besides the well-documented flow of goods heading west, consignments of cotton, ivory, animal furs, grapevines and other goods passed through the strategically sited port on their way east.
Ironically, for a city built on trade and taxes, the biggest problem Venice faces today is visitors who don’t contribute enough to the local economy.
A lack of spending by millions of day-tripping tourists and cruise passengers who aren’t liable for nightly hotel taxes has prompted authorities to introduce a citywide access fee from January 2020.
Two thousand years ago, tariffs and tolls helped Venice develop and prosper. Now they’re needed to prevent its demise.
Source: SCMP
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29/06/2019
BEIJING, June 28 (Xinhua) – Set to build an “information bridge” for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) construction, attendees of the Belt and Road Economic Information Partnership (BREIP) in Beijing believed it would reduce the “information deficit” between countries.
The partnership, designed to eliminate information asymmetry in implementing the BRI, offers demonstration, guidance and services to participants of the BRI, and create a new platform for international cooperation.
The platform of BRInfo, operated and maintained by China Economic Information Service (CEIS) under Xinhua News Agency, allows BREIP members to share information and conduct cooperation.
Alfred Schipke, IMF Senior Resident Representative for China, said it would be important to strengthen policy frameworks and foster capacity development in China and in partner countries.
“The effective sharing of information will be more and more important. Here, the BREIP could be a key platform,” Schipke said.
New commercial opportunities will surely be created with information from professional institutions and needs of enterprises brought together, so as to promote mutual understanding, said Liu Zhengrong, vice president of Xinhua News Agency.
The BREIP, offering news service and information assurance, has provided a platform of news and economic information for countries and regions to expand cooperation, noted Marat Abulkhatin, first deputy chief editor of TASS Russian News Agency.
Domestic information reports growing significance now in global market, and under the BRInfo mechanism, news agencies can help to further eliminate information asymmetry, said Raphael Juan, director of markets at Brazilian CMA News Agency.
Polish government and enterprises look forward to better understanding different market situations and making better decisions with the economic information shared on the BREIP, said Ryszard Marcin Nizewski, product director with Polish Press Agency.
The BRI has made great contributions to international trade and the international economy, and its achievements have far exceeded expectations. It is believed that the BREIP will also become a multi-faceted cooperation tool, according to Dzmitry Prymshyts, deputy director for Research and Innovation of the Institute of Economics of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.
This platform could decrease the “information deficit” between countries while growing into a timely, objective and solid source of information, Prymshyts said.
The BREIP, established in Beijing on Thursday, was initiated by Xinhua News Agency and co-founded by more than 30 institutions including well-known news agencies, information service providers, research institutions, chambers of commerce and associations from more than 20 countries and regions in Asia, Europe, Africa, Latin America and Oceania.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in africa, Asia, Beijing, Belt and Road (B&R), Belt and Road Economic Information Partnership (BREIP), Brazilian CMA News Agency, build info bridge, China Economic Information Service (CEIS), Economic Information Partnership, Europe, IMF, Institute of Economics of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Latin America, Oceania, TASS Russian News Agency, Uncategorized, Xinhua News Agency |
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03/06/2019
Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan meets with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin, Germany, May, 31, 2019. Wang Qishan paid a visit to Germany from Thursday to Sunday at the invitation of the German Federal Government. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)
BERLIN, June 2 (Xinhua) — Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan paid a visit to Germany from Thursday to Sunday at the invitation of the German Federal Government.
During his visit in Berlin, Wang met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas separately.
When meeting with Steinmeier, Wang said that China and Germany were both major world economies and major countries with great influence. The relations between the two countries have gone beyond bilateral scope and bear global significance.
Wang said in recent years the high-level contacts were frequent, and the cooperation in all fields has been constantly deepened, adding he is willing to push for new development of the all-around strategic partnership through his visit.
Noting the ties between China and Germany is currently facing a new situation, Wang called on the two countries to set a model of win-win cooperation for the world through deepening collaboration, to bring stability to the world through guiding the China-EU cooperation, and to strength the power to safeguard multilateralism through boosting global governance.
For his part, German President Steinmeier said that the current international landscape is complicated and turbulent, and multilateralism is under threat.
He noted that Germany highly values the ties with China, adding Germany is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with China at all levels, and to continue the pragmatic cooperations in Industry 4.0 and in other fields.
Germany and China, and Europe and China, should join hands to maintain the world peace and stability, free trade, and existing international orders, Steinmeier added.
When meeting with Merkel, Wang said China sticks to peaceful development, and will through steadily deepening reform and opening up, solve the existing problem of imbalance and insufficient development to meet people’s desire for a better life and to fulfill the promises of the party and the government to the people.
Wang said China cannot develop itself in isolation from the world, nor can the world develop without the 1.4 billion Chinese people, and China advocates countries to together build a community of shared future for humankind.
Facing the profound and complex changes in the international situation, China always insists on doing its own share firstly, staying calm and clear-headed, showing composure, shouldering responsibility and reacting rationally, he noted.
Wang called on China and Germany, as all-around strategic partners, to strengthen cooperation in building a more fair and reasonable global governance system, and to jointly face the uncertainties.
The Chinese vice president also said that China has always viewed Europe from a strategic height and with a long-term vision, and firmly supported the European integration. Wang added that China is a trustworthy partner for Europe to have dialogue on an equal footing.
Chancellor Merkel said Germany appreciates China’s great achievements in economic development and believes that China can definitely achieve the ambitious goals of eradicating poverty and finishing building a moderately prosperous society on schedule.
Facing the current complex and volatile international environment in which various new problems emerge, Merkel said, Germany is always committed to safeguarding the principle of multilateralism and the existing international order.
She noted that Germany advocates to strengthen international coordination and collaboration through dialogue, disagrees with the action of exerting threat and pressure to solve problems.
She believed that Germany and China, as well as Europe and China, share broad consensus on a wide range of issues, expressing Germany’s willingness to strengthen communication, exchanges and cooperation with China, and to improve global governance system jointly with China.
When meeting with Heiko Maas, Wang said China and Germany share common interests in many fields such as deepening pragmatic cooperation, safeguarding multilateralism and free trade, improving global governance and promoting world peace.
Looking to the next stage of the bilateral relations, Wang advocates that both sides should set the right direction for the Sino-German, Sino-European win-win cooperation, encourage the enhanced exchanges in ideology, talents as well as science and technology, cement the friendship between the two peoples, and to inject more positive energy into the world.
Echoing Wang’s comments, Maas said Germany is willing to strengthen strategic communication and cooperation on multilateral issues with China, as well as to jointly tackle global challenges, safeguard multilateralism and international order, promote the liberalization of international trade.
During his visit to Germany, Wang also met with mayor of Hamburg Peter Tschentscher and Bavarian governor Markus Soeder and visited the port of Hamburg.
Before his tour to Germany, the Chinese Vice president also visited Pakistan and the Netherlands.
Source: Xinhua
Posted in Angela Merkel, Chancellor, Chinese vice president, Europe, foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, German Federal Government, German President, Germany, Heiko Maas, Pakistan, the Netherlands, Uncategorized, Wang Qishan |
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CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 