Chinese vice premier puts forward roadmap for Silk Road revival

Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang has suggested a broad-strokes roadmap for building the Silk Road economic belt during an ongoing expo in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

In his keynote speech delivered at the fourth China-Eurasia Expo on Monday, Wang said China and countries along the belt should make joint efforts in streamlining trade procedures, improving industrial levels and building an efficient transportation network in a step toward a vigorous new "Silk Road".

He said China is willing to provide financial support for countries along the route in the process of infrastructure construction.

The expo attracted roughly 25,000 participants from China, 60 foreign countries and four international organizations.

With the building of the Silk Road economic belt high on the agenda, the six-day international fair, which opened Monday in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang, aims at drawing regional economies together to discuss development strategies.

The Silk Road economic belt, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Central Asia in September 2013, involves over 40 Asian and European countries and regions with a combined population of 3 billion.

It eyes the cultural revival of the Silk Road, which historically links China with Central Asia and Europe, as a way of developing political and economic ties.

Experts and participants said Wang's overarching plan for the hugely ambitious scheme is likely to speed up the construction of what is shaping up to be a major regional economic force.

FREER, BALANCED TRADE

China has been conducting measures to allow for easier trade procedures on the belt. For instance, customs procedures have been streamlined at the Horgos International Border Cooperation Center, a free port on the China-Kazakhstan border. Visiting traders can stay for 30 days visa-free in the center.

In his speech, Wang signaled China's willingness to continue such efforts for inbound and outbound traders by deepening cooperation in terms of customs, e-commerce and cross-border transportation to bring more trade access.

He mentioned reaching a balanced trade mechanism, saying China is willing to buy advantage products from countries on the route to help traders catch on par and realize sustainable development.

Such measures are welcomed by participants like Nazira, an expo coordinator for the industry and commerce union of Kyrgyzstan.

Nazira said that wool handmade products from her country have found immense popularity in China and that Kyrgyz companies have received a good number of orders from China at the past expos.

"I believe there will be more opportunities for us," Nazira told Xinhua at the expo.

Wang Ning, a research fellow with the economy research department of Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences, lauded Wang's proposal. She said that freer and balanced trade is the foundation of international cooperation and it is time that countries abandon trade barriers to allow for quick flow of people and commodities.

INDUSTRY COOPERATION NECESSARY

Industrial cooperation, a major driving force behind the belt's future development, should also be enhanced, Wang Yang said.

So far, the country has established four economic and trade cooperation zones outside China with a total investment of 2 billion U.S. dollars.

China hopes to continue such cooperation by encouraging Chinese companies in sectors such as textiles, home appliances and electronics to invest in countries along the belt in an attempt to push up local industrial levels.

Cooperation is a necessity in building the belt, because it will bring more understanding and exchanges, according to Meng Yongsheng, deputy dean of the economy department of Xinjiang University of Finance and Economics.

Meng said that many countries in central Asia were historically lagging behind in economy, and that they tend to be cautious in opening up their market. By encouraging industrial cooperation, it will engage them more in the process of the building scheme.

"It will be wise for China to pursue diverse forms of cooperation so that countries along the new Silk Road could truly benefit from the economic belt," Meng said.

FINANCE FOR TRANSPORTATION NETWORK

Despite turbo-charged development in the past, Wang has pointed out a slew of bottlenecks that makes the new Silk Road bumpy at the moment, including poor infrastructure and low levels of interconnectivity.

He said that countries should jointly work toward a safe and efficient transportation network, adding that China is currently taking the lead urging financial institutions to give aid to these countries in infrastructure construction.

Kaspars Ozolins, State Secretary of Ministry of Transport of Latvia, hailed the importance of such transportation network, saying cooperation regarding logistics and supply chain management is becoming increasingly important amid growing trade volumes between Europe and China.

"The development of continental Euro-Asia land transit will provide the conditions for increased Chinese cargo flows to and from Europe, especially from China's western and central provinces," Kaspars said.