What is China’s One Belt On-road?

  • The Belt and Road Initiative, formerly known as One Belt One Road (OBOR) (Chinese:一带一路), is a global development strategy adopted by the Chinese government in 2013 involving infrastructure development and investments in nearly 70 countries and international organizations. It is considered a centerpiece of President Xi Jinping’s foreign policy.
  • President Xi Jinping originally announced the strategy during official visits to Indonesia and Kazakhstan in 2013. “Belt” refers to the overland routes for road and rail transportation, called “the Silk Road Economic Belt”; whereas “road” refers to the sea routes, or the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. It was incorporated into the constitution of the People’s Republic of China in 2017.
  • The Chinese government calls the initiative “a bid to enhance regional connectivity and embrace a brighter future”. Some observers see it as a push for Chinese dominance in global affairs with a China-centered trading network. The project has a targeted completion date of 2049, which coincides with the 100th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China.

Full name: The Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road

What is the purpose of one belt one road?

  • Promote economic development and inter-regional connectivity
  • The objectives of the OBOR strategy are to promote economic prosperity of the countries along the belt and road and regional economic cooperation, to strengthen exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations, and to promote world peace and development.

Planned completion date:2049

What countries are involved in one belt one road?

  • Region Served: Asia, Africa, Europe, Middle East, Americas
  • As of March 2020, 131 to 138 countries had joined the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) by signing an MoU

What is the difference between OBOR and BRI?

  • Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) since 2016. But One Belt One Road (OBOR) is still the reference term in Chinese-language media
  • OBOR is version 1.0, and BRI is version 2.0

What does Belt and Road mean?

  • Belt- The Silk Road Economic Belt
    • Essentially, the “belt” includes countries located on the original Silk Road through Central Asia, West Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.
    • Many of the countries that are part of this belt are also members of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Three belts are proposed. The North belt would go through Central Asia and Russia to Europe. The Central belt passes through Central Asia and West Asia to the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean. The South belt runs from China to Southeast Asia, South Asia, to the Indian Ocean through Pakistan.
  • Road- 21st Century Maritime Silk Road
    • Maritime Silk Road, is the sea route ‘corridor’
    • It is a complementary initiative aimed at investing and fostering collaboration in Southeast Asia, Oceania and Africa through several contiguous bodies of water: the South China Sea, the South Pacific Ocean, and the wider Indian Ocean area.
    • Like the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative, most countries have joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.