“Belt and Road”…a Chinese initiative aimed at enhancing cooperation between countries and ending unipolar hegemony

The Belt and Road Initiative is an important Chinese economic development project that aims to develop and establish land and sea trade routes and corridors linking more than 150 countries and to enhance cooperation between them in various fields, which establishes a new phase that puts an end to the hegemony of the United States and its Western allies over the world’s capabilities and their theft of the wealth of peoples, as it establishes a multipolar world based on equality and respect for the mutual interests of all peoples.

The “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, an abbreviation for the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, was launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 with the aim of strengthening trade and economic ties between Asia, Europe and Africa, through the construction of railway networks , Oil and gas pipelines, electric power lines, telecommunications, maritime infrastructure, and the relaunch of the ancient Silk Road.

The initiative is divided into two branches: the first is the Silk Road Economic Belt, which aims to link China with Europe, passing through South Asia and Central Asia, and the second is the Maritime Silk Road, which aims to link China with Europe, passing through Southeast Asia, the Middle East and North Africa region, which opens a new chapter in international cooperation to achieve a brighter future.

China has established an investment fund with a capital estimated at billions of dollars to finance these projects, and to assist developing countries and international institutions in the Silk Road countries. this initiative is not limited to developing infrastructure and enhancing global trade, but rather deepening ties between peoples, cross-cultural exchange, and digital economic cooperation, which leads to building an open global economy, promoting prosperity and development for the whole world.

Since proposing the initiative, the Chinese President called for building a “Community of Common Destiny for Mankind” based on his country’s role and responsibility in building a unified world. On January 18, 2017, he delivered a speech at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva in which he presented his country’s proposals for the world to be one family, and for the international community to join efforts as to make the Earth more peaceful and prosperous based on the concept of a common future for mankind.

In February 2017, the United Nations included the concept “Creating a common  Destiny for Mankind” in its resolution entitled “The New Partnership for Africa’s Development in the Social Field”, and on March 17, the UN Security Council included (Community of Common Density for Humanity) in its Resolution No. 2344, which called to enhance regional cooperation through the “Belt and Road” initiative, and stressed the push for regional cooperation, based on the spirit of cooperation and ensuring security, stability and development to build the community.

The initiative was widely and internationally welcomed, and to date more than 150 countries, including Syria, have joined it, in addition to more than 30 international organizations, because it came within the framework of international efforts to establish multilateral international platforms, such as the United Nations, the G20, BRICS, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, to form a more just and democratic global system in the face of the arrogance of the United States.

Syria has been an important station on the Silk Road since ancient times, through which Chinese products such as silk and porcelain were sold to West Asia. communication between Syria and China dates back to a thousand years ago, as Palmyra was an important commercial center and a link between the East and the West, making China and Syria two natural partners in building the “Belt and Road” Initiative, in addition to the existence of a solid foundation and promising prospects for cooperation between the two countries, given the historical ties of friendship and the complete compatibility between the “Belt and Road” initiative and President Bashar al-Assad’s strategy on “heading eastward”.

On July 17, 2021, President al-Assad discussed with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Syria’s participation in the “Belt and Road” Initiative, the president stressed that China is a strong country, that has a large and important position on the international arena, and Syria looks forward to expanding areas of cooperation with it at various levels, while the Chinese Foreign Minister noted the importance of Syria’s participation in the initiative given its location and important regional role, stressing his country’s continued support for Syria in its war against terrorism and in confronting the Western siege and sanctions imposed on it.

On November 5, 2021, President Al-Assad affirmed, during a phone call with President Xi Jinping, Syria’s keenness to develop the relationship between the two countries, and to join the “Belt and Road” initiative, which constitutes a path for economy and development, and a new way in which countries deal with each other in order to link the common destiny of peoples and humanity,while the Chinese President stressed that the friendship between his country and Syria is rooted in the depths of history, and he also welcomed Syria’s participation in the initiative.

On January 12, 2022, Syria and China signed a memorandum of understanding within the framework of the “Belt and Road” Initiative, according to which Syria joined the initiative, which helps open broad horizons of cooperation between the two countries, and with a number of other countries partners in the initiative in several fields, including the exchange of goods, technology and capital, activating the movement of individuals and enhancing cultural exchange.

On April 29, 2023, during his meeting with Chinese Special Envoy to the Middle East Zhai Jun, President Al-Assad stressed the importance of the “Belt and Road” Initiative in achieving development and economic cooperation, explaining that since the confrontation has always been primarily economic, liberation from the restriction of dealing with the dollar has become necessary, and that the BRICS countries can play a leading role in this field, in addition to the option of adopting the Chinese yuan in commercial transactions between countries, while the Chinese official indicated that his country views relations with Syria from a strategic perspective, and within a comprehensive vision for the region.

During the past ten years, the “Belt and Road” Initiative has achieved fruitful results, attracting more than three-quarters of the world’s countries to join it, establishing more than 3,000 cooperative projects, stimulating investment of about one trillion US dollars, and creating 420,000 job opportunities for countries located along the road. All of these achievements prove that the “Belt and Road” Initiative benefits all countries and contributes to establishing security and peace throughout the world.

Leen Al Salman