The Baloch House

http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Nepal-joins-China-s-Silk-Road-initiative-possibly-irking-India
May 12, 2017 3:25 pm JST

KATHMANDU (Kyodo) -- Nepal on Friday signed an agreement to be part of Chinese President Xi Jinping's ambitious plan to build a new Silk Road linking Asia, Africa and Europe, a move that could alarm India, which jostles with China for influence in Kathmandu.At a special function held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu, Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi, the ministry's top bureaucrat, and Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Yu Hong inked the deal, the ministry said."This is a historic agreement," said Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat, who witnessed the signing to bring the Himalayan nation into Beijing's initiative to expand its economic and geopolitical heft across several continents.The massive infrastructure project is commonly referred to as "One Belt, One Road," short for Silk Road Econom…

http://m.hindustantimes.com/india-news/a-strategy-through-investments-why-china-s-silk-road-plan-has-spelt-unease-for-india-us-russia/story-oRsPwwV6J18gFGdqM4XdSM.html



Dubbed “One Belt, One Road” after ancient trade routes through the Indian Ocean and Central Asia, the initiative is Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature project.In this April 20, 2015 file photo, municipality workers walk past a billboard showing pictures of Chinese President Xi Jinping, center, with Pakistan’s President Mamnoon Hussain, left, and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on display during a two-day visit by the Chinese president to launch an ambitious $45 billion economic corridor linking Pakistan’s port city of Gwadar with western China, in Islamabad, Pakistan. (AP Photo)Updated: May 12, 2017 10:32 ISTBy Associated Press, BeijingIn a mountain valley in Kashmir, plans are underway for Chinese engineers guarded by Pakistani forces to expand the lofty Karakoram Highway in a project that is stirring diplomatic frict…

http://www.ecns.cn/m/2017/05-12/257130.shtml



2017-05-12 10:07 CGTN Editor: Mo Hong'eOne of the most prominent infrastructure projects in Southeast Asia could lead to the establishment of the biggest shipping port and industrial zone in Dawei, on the west coast of Myanmar. A high-level task force has been set up to beef the development of this project.An ambitious 8.5-billion-U.S.-dollar plan calls for a deep-sea port and Special Economic Zone, seeing the creation of South East Asia's largest industrial park.The project is a joint venture between Myanmar, Thailand and Japan. Business leaders believe the port will transform the region."When the port is built we can send products to other places. There will also be jobs for Myanmar people, even skilled jobs. Because there are very few opportunities here at the moment, most of the young people have to go to Malaysia or Thailand to work."So far work has been limited to bringing in construction materials and preparing the g…

Updated: May 11, 2017 21:21 IST | Raghu Dayalhttp://m.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/china-building-a-complex-web-of-rail-road-networks-crisscrossing-asia/article9693579.eceBuilding a complex web of rail, road networks criss-crossing Asia, China is asserting its might as a civilisational powerTo demonstrate the sweep and magnitude of its flagship, and historic, Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China will play host to two score or more heads of government at a special conclave in Beijing this weekend.With rare passion and tenacity, Chinese President Xi Jinping has pursued his vision of a new Silk Road with a network of high- speed rail, motorways, pipelines, ports, fibre optic cables, to “break the connectivity bottleneck” in Asia. In September 2013, he proposed a Silk Road Economic Belt, building a transport corridor connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Baltic Sea, and linking East Asia to South Asia and West Asia.The following month, he advocated the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. …

It’s a confusing title but it could turn out to be the largest ever infrastructure project with close to a trillion dollars being invested across the globeView more sharing optionsTom Phillips in BeijingThursday 11 May 2017 21.02 EDTLast modified on Thursday 11 May 2017 21.12 EDTOn Sunday Chinese President Xi Jinping will welcome world leaders including Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi to Beijing for what is billed as China’s most important diplomatic event of the year: a two-day forum celebrating Xi’s so-called ‘Belt and Road initiative’.The Belt and what initiative?Even Chinese officials have struggled to define the awkwardly-named scheme and a flurry of music-themed propaganda about Xi’s signature foreign policy in the lead-up to this weekend’s event has done little to clear things up.World's biggest building project aims to make China great again“It is not a solo song but a chorus,” one veteran Chinese diplomat claim…

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN187179


People take pictures of the ''Golden Bridge on Silk Road'' installation by artist Shu Yong, set up ahead of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China May 10, 2017.REUTERS/THOMAS PETERXThe use of local currencies instead of the U.S. dollar or other major currencies in China's Belt and Road initiative will help to ensure financial stability, officials at China's central bank said this week.Transacting in the currencies of countries along the Silk Road route will gradually reduce dependence on major currencies and lower the risks of exchange rate fluctuations, said Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China."Increasing the use of local currencies will gradually enhance confidence and raise attractiveness of the local currencies," Zhou wrote in an article published in the central bank's China Finance magazine this week.ADVERTISEMENTIn an interview with People's Daily published on Thurs…

http://www.livemint.com/Politics/L7ZdhqoWrmqp3siLG4mdhJ/Trains-sea-ports-of-Chinas-new-Silk-Road.html
China’s OBOR spans some 65 countries representing 60% of the global population and a third of global GDP. Here are some other projects of China Development BankAFPThe China Development Bank alone has earmarked $890 billion for some 900 projects. Photo: AFPBeijing: China’s Silk Road summit on Sunday will highlight the country’s plans to revive ancient trade routes from Asia to Europe and Africa with a massive network of rail and maritime links.The One Belt, One Road Initiative was unveiled by President Xi Jinping in 2013. Xi will host top officials from 28 nations for the two-day conference on the outskirts of Beijing, though few Western leaders will attend the meeting.Beijing’s grand vision includes the “Silk Road Economic Belt,” which extends from China to central Asia through Europe, linking northern Xi’an city with Dushanbe in Tajikistan, Moscow, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and Ve…

Reuters
By Drazen Jorgic | ISLAMABADPakistan's debt and other repayments on China's "Belt and Road" initiative will peak at around $5 billion in 2022, but will be more than offset by transit fees charged on the new transport corridor, says the Pakistan government's chief economist.China has pledged to invest up to $57 billion in Pakistan's rail, road and energy infrastructure through its vast modern-day "Silk Road" network of trade routes linking Asia with Europe and Africa.Officials expect a huge uptick in trade between the two nations once Pakistan's Arabian Sea port of Gwadar is functional and work on motorways is finished allowing goods to cross the Himalayas to and from China's western Xinjiang province.The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship "Belt and Road" project, has been credited with helping revive Pakistan's sluggish economy, but investors have raised concerns that ✔🔴Pakistan's currency could c…