China, EU can work together in connectivity
By
Shada Islam
Europe
and China can and should work together to enhance connectivity between Asia and
Europe. Implementing BRI and connectivity therefore requires Asia-Europe
cooperation.
The
story of the Silk Road has intrigued me since childhood. The magic of faraway
lands, traders bringing soft silk and exotic spices to countries across the
long and winding road, the thrill of cultures and peoples meeting each other
across the centuries.
Through
the years it has been fascinating to see how different countries have tried to
resurrect that dream of an inter-connected Eurasia, with varying degrees of
success. The Chinese version of the ancient Silk Road, spanning many nations,
regions and peoples, is gaining traction across the world.
That's
a good thing. The world needs more investments in infrastructure and
connectivity to boost growth and development. However, to succeed and live up
to its potential, today's new Silk Road requires a collaborative effort.
By
the time Beijing hosted the BRI Forum in July 2017, knowledge of the Chinese
initiative had increased. The turnout of heads of state and government, foreign
ministers, business leaders and academics was impressive. The focus was on how
to make the blueprint work - and how BRI was going to improve global connectivity.
Two
years on, and it's clear that many countries are actively engaged in BRI and
that there is no dearth of projects eligible for BRI funding.
Here
in Europe, EU reaction has gone through different phases, starting off with
confusion and caution. Recently, the EU has stated that there could be some
form of cooperation - provided certain key principles are respected by all
those involved in the projects.
Such
synergies are discussed within the context of the EU-China Connectivity
Platform. European businesses, regions and academics are spending more time,
effort and energy in trying to understand the various facets of the BRI.
Our
first discussion on BRI was in China in 2014 at a round-table attended by
leading Chinese and European scholars. The discussion was quite basic: we were
all interested but had many questions.
Since
then, the topic has been discussed in all our EU-China meetings. We recognize
that while the focus of international discussions is on infrastructure, BRI is
also about transport, energy, digital economy and people-to-people contacts.
The
new EU connectivity strategy was unveiled in autumn last year and we believe
that China and the EU can work together in connectivity and develop the common
standards for connectivity projects.
We
think that efforts should be made to multilateralize ongoing national and
regional discussions on connectivity. Europe and China can and should work
together to enhance sustainable connectivity between Asia and Europe. No
country or organization can undertake such an immense challenge on its own.
(Shada
Islam is Director of Europe and Geopolitics at Friends of Europe)
(Source:
People’s Daily)
Aerial photo
taken on Feb. 1, 2019 shows the container terminal of Port of Lianyungang. Photo: Peoples’ Daily
China, EU can work together in connectivity
Reviewed by PEOPLES MAIL
on
10:32
Rating:
No comments: