Spatial-temporal Evolution and Determinants of the Belt and Road Initiative: A Maximum Entropy Gravity Model Approach

The spatial interaction model is an effective way to explore the geographical disparities inherent in the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI) by simulating spatial flows. The traditional gravity model implies the hypothesis of equilibrium points without any reference to when or how to achieve it. In this paper, a dynamic gravity model was established based on the Maximum Entropy(MaxEnt) theory to estimate and monitor the interconnection intensity and dynamic characters of bilateral relations. In order to detect the determinants of interconnection intensity, a Geodetector method was applied to identify and evaluate the determinants of spatial networks in five dimensions. The empirical study clearly demonstrates a heterogeneous and non-circular spatial structure. The main driving forces of spatial-temporal evolution are foreign direct investment, tourism and railway infrastructure construction, while determinants in different sub-regions show obvious spatial differentiation. Southeast Asian countries are typically multi-island area where aviation infrastructure plays a more important role. North and Central Asian countries regard oil as a pillar industry where power and port facilities have a greater impact on the interconnection. While Western Asian countries are mostly influenced by the railway infrastructure, Eastern European countries already have relatively robust infrastructure where tariff policies provide a greater impetus.

Approaches of Scientific and Cultural Communication Constructed by Wuhan Museum of Science and Technology in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative

The Belt and Road initiative is in the first instance,the barrier-free communication in ideology and culture.To cooperate with the Belt and Road initiative,excellent exhibitions in cultural technology and history from other nations are brought in Wuhan Museum of Science and Technology(hereinafter referred to as WMST).WMST’s own science education achievements are going global in both online and offline ways to support and get involved in the initiative and contribute to international communications.

The Reciprocal and Symbiotic Effects of Industrial Relocation between China and BRI Countries

Reciprocity and symbiosis are essential to the creation of“a community with a shared future for mankind”,and industrial relocation is a key strategy for implementing the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).This paper investigates the reciprocal and symbiotic effects of industrial relocation between China and BRI countries,and performs an empirical test using the Eora global supply chain database of 2002-2020.Our findings suggest that there has been an increasing level of industrial reciprocity and symbiosis between China and BRI countries,but great differences exist across sectors and regions;industrial relocation between China and BRI countries is conducive to two-way industrial reciprocity and symbiosis primarily through regional value chain cooperation and an increasing level of industrial agglomeration.The most substantial effects have been observed in industrial relocation involving developed BRI countries,in medium-and high-tech sectors,and following the announcement of the BRI.

Australia’s Fear and Greed over China’s Rise:A Discourse Analysis of Mainstream News Coverage of the Belt and Road Initiative

China’s rise has stirred up world-wide debate.In Australia,China has been one of the keywords in its foreign and strategic policies and on news media.Its rise intensifies the dual functions―benefit provider and security offender to Australia and the tensions between greed of economic gains and fear of China’s increasing geopolitical strength and influence.The“fear and greed”narration is well-presented on Australian mainstream media.Such ambivalence can also find its expressions in the recent typical case of China’s rise―the Belt and Road Initiative.It is worthwhile to find out how Australia’s ambivalence to BRI and China’s rise is represented on media and to draw the sociopolitical inferences behind“fear and greed”.The thesis is going to take BRI as a typical example of China’s rise to examine the ambivalent“fear and greed”narration on Australian mainstream news media.Data sample includes news reports of BRI from ABC News,The Australian,The Australian Financial Review,The Sydney Morning Herald,and The Age from September 1st,2013 to October 31st,2017.The discourse analysis on China’s images finds that Australia is rather biased against China,regarding China both as a lucrative friend and a threatening enemy.The bias lingers on for centuries and generates misunderstanding,mistrust,and anxiety.Profit drives Australia to establish closer economic ties with China,while value differences would not allow too much proximity but help to maintain a robust alliance with its allies.Australia’s position between its major economic partner and traditional allies has caused much concern and will have a long-term influence on its policy-making decisions.

An Inquiry into the Approach to Asian Regional Trade Integration Under the Belt and Road Initiative——The Case of the Alignment of a China-Japan-South Korea Free Trade Area

It has been five years since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was first introduced. Though there has been a growing body of literature on regional cooperation between covered countries, Japan and South Korea have been barely discussed. This paper starts with the consensus-based mechanism of a China-Japan-South Korea Free Trade Area (FTA) to probe the approach of its alignment with the BRI in terms of the sequence of “master plans,”“viability of cooperation,” and “embedding of rules.” This inquiry found that the three countries have a shared interest in cooperation in Central Asia to which China prefers a pragmatic approach, while Japan and South Korea an approach combining idealism with pragmatism. Given the huge potential of cooperation between the trio, it is suggested that a “Central Asia chapter” be incorporated in the negotiation framework of this trilateral FTA, and that the design feature three aspects;fundamental principles, specific rules, and an executive body with a view to functionally contributing to regional trade integration in Asia. This approach may also be applied to the alignment of other Asian areas with the BRI.

Evaluation of Sustainable Infrastructure in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative:A Case Study of Kenya C12 Road Reconstruction Project

Sustainable development presents a challenge to most countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).Given the importance of infrastructure as a key aspect of the BRI,it is of great importance to investigate sustainable infrastructure in BRI countries.This paper explores how infrastructure meets the criteria of sustainable development and promotes sustainability.However,existing evaluation frameworks are not target-oriented,systematic,and practical.To fill this gap,we provide the framework based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and apply it to the evaluation of the C12 Road Reconstruction Project.We find that the project promotes local sustainable development as a whole but has negative effects in some respects.In addition to excellent project management,the project still can improve public communication and local integration.In terms of policy implementation,we suggest summarizing the successful business model and promoting top-down and multi-dimensions designs.

Spatial Interaction Network Analysis of Crude Oil Trade Relations between Countries along the Belt and Road

Based on the theories and methods of complex network,crude oil trade flows between countries along the Belt and Road(B&R,hereafter)are inserted into the Geo-space of B&R and form a spatial interaction network which takes the countries as nodes and takes the trade relations as edges.The networked mining and evolution analysis can provide important references for the research on trade relations among the B&R countries and the formulation of trade policy.This paper researches and discusses the construction,statistical analysis,top networks and stability of the crude oil trade network between the B&R countries from 2001 to 2020 from the perspectives of Geo-Computation for Social Sciences(GCSS)and spatial interaction.Firstly,evolutions of out-degree,in-degree,out-strength and in-strength of the top 10 countries in the crude oil trade network are computed and analyzed.Secondly,the top network method is used to explore the evolution characteristics of hierarchical structures.And finally,the sequential evolution characteristics of the crude oil trade network stability are analyzed utilizing the network stability measure method based on the trade relationship autocorrelation function.The analysis results show that Russia has the largest out-degree and out-strength,and China has the largest in-degree and in-strength.The crude oil trade volume of the top 10 import and export networks between 2001—2020 accounts for over 90%of the total trade volume of the crude oil trade network,and the proportion remains relatively stable.However,the stability of the network showed strong fluctuations in 2009,2012 and 2014,which may be closely related to major international events in these years,which could furtherly be used to build a correlation model between network volatility and major events.This paper explores how to construct and analyze the spatial interaction network of crude oil trade and can provide references for trade relations research and trade policy formulation of B&R countries.

The Belt and Road Initiative and Financing Constraint for Chinese Enterprises

In the context of China’s proactive implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI),unraveling the BRI’s effect on corporate behavior is of vital importance to China’s policymaking on overseas investment.With the BRI’s enactment as a quasi-natural experiment,this paper employs the difference in differences(DID)method to investigate the BRI’s effect on the financing constraint for Chinese enterprises.Our study finds that the BRI’s implementation has significantly reduced financing constraints for BRI enterprises,and the effect is more significant for emerging advantageous industries and export-oriented node cities.

Sino-Japanese Cooperation in the Belt and Road Initiative:Motivation Analysis and Future Prospect

The global power shift,economic uncertainty and significant domestic pressures have reshaped Japan’s stance from non-cooperative toward positive on China’s Belt and Road Initiative.While structural forces propelling Japan’s policy evolution remain in place,potential gain from strengthening cooperation with China are apparent.It is foreseeable that the BRI will bring wider and more practical Sino-Japanese cooperation,despite a complicated geopolitical setting that will necessitate more counter measures from Japan to "rebalance" its new stance on the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Belt and Road Initiative:Multilingual Opportunities and Linguistic Challenges for Guangxi,China

The Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)is to construct a large unified market,to make full use of both international and domestic markets,and to enhance the mutual understanding and trust of member nations of Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN)through cultural exchange,people-to-people ties and integration.Geographically adjacent to ASEAN countries and is close to India and Bangladesh in South Asia,Thailand and Cambodia in Southeast Asia,Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region of China is a key littoral or southern gateway for China’s BRI.Foreign language planning is an essential element for the social development of a country economically and culturally.By reviewing the implementation of the foreign language policy in Guangxi,I analyzed the multilingual opportunities and linguistic challenges in the region,which shares the cross-border languages with its neighboring countries in the multi-ethnic and multi-lingual community,to reveal the sociological meaning of the foreign language policy beyond its linguistic meaning,and propose an English-plus multilingual policy approach toward the ASEAN countries to meet the current needs of communications associated with the BRI.

Counteraction to China?Impact of the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation on China’s Development Finance

The United States passed the Better Utilization of Investment Leading to Development(BUILD Act),as a counterweight to China’s overseas development activities.Under the Act,the US established a new federal agency,the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation(DFC),to enhance U.S.development financing capabilities.To better understand the impact of the DFC on China’s development finance,this article analyzes the DFC’s purpose,functions,structure,and funding.Then it focuses on the purpose of establishing the DFC,providing a preliminary analysis of the potential motivation for its establishment.It also compares the China Development Bank(CDB)and the DFC based on their focused sectors.Finally,through an in-depth analysis of financial frictions in China-U.S.relations,this article argues that the DFC competes with China’s overseas development financing activities in the context of broader strategic competition between China and the U.S.

Tracking Transfer of Carbon Dioxide Emissions to Countries along the Silk Roads Through Global Value Chains

The Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)has aroused rich discussions about the possible increase in carbon dioxide emission under the arduous global carbon dioxide emission reduction task.Adopting the methods of input-output technique and complex network ana-lysis,we first construct a fairer method to trace carbon dioxide emission transfer based on global value chains,then trace the source of carbon dioxide emission transfer to the Silk Roads countries with a long-term multiple regional input-output database.We find that,first,after the proposal of the BRI,the total direct carbon dioxide emissions of the Silk Roads countries and China’s proportion of carbon dioxide emission transfer to the other Silk Roads countries have both declined.Second,the Silk Roads countries are generally the net receivers of carbon dioxide emission transfer,and the inflow is mainly distributed in Southeast Asian countries and core countries in other sub-regions.Then,the transfer of carbon dioxide emission accepted by the Silk Roads countries comes mostly from large developing countries,such as China,Russia,and India,and developed countries,such as the United States,Japan,and Germany.The products are mainly concentrated in energy and chemical industries,as well as heavy industries,such as mining and quarrying,and metal products.We suggest that,due to the high degree of spatial and industrial concentrations of carbon dioxide emission transfer,it is necessary to make targeted policies for these countries and industries to reduce these transfers.

China's Economic Diplomacy:Concept,Organization,Implementation Mechanisms and the BRI

Based on the existing research regarding China’s economic diplomacy,this study creates a theoretical structure for economic diplomacy with Chinese characteristics that encompasses soft power,the two competitive concepts of justified ought and self interests,and the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).By introducing soft power,this paper argues that the goal of economic diplomacy with Chinese characteristics for the new era is to achieve the conversion of hard power to soft power.Unlike the“carrot and stick”principle often followed by Western powers in their economic diplomacy with political strings attached,the conversion between hard power and soft power in China’s economic diplomacy hinges upon the two competitive concepts of justified ought and self interests,which is the basic principle that guides China’s economic diplomacy overall.We argue that in creating an implementation mechanism for China’s economic diplomacy,policymakers must consider China’s unique national condition as a large economy not yet rich in per capita terms,while drawing upon the experiences of other major nations.

The Global Value Chains and the Evolution of Chinese Economic Model

According to the Word Bank,in the first 38 years of China,economic reform took 700 million people out poverty line in China at the same time benefiting the Global South economy due to the integration of the transnational enterprises global value chains with China.Chinese government understood the economic rational of global value chains,Flying Geese Model,and foreign direct investment theories and introduced policies to attract foreign capital,technology,production,and foreign buyers,placing China as the final stage of the production networks in Asia and also transforming China in the biggest buying market of many resources and energy suppliers from less developed countries in Asia,Africa,and South America.But a new model of Chinese economic development even more interconnected and interdependent with the world is now on move.Even quite before the world acknowledge the protectionist mindset of the US in Trump era,Chinese President Xi Jinping launched in 2013 a very ambitious initiative under the name of“One Road,One Belt,the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road”to enhance a new stage of world globalization,which together with two complimentary initiatives:the“International Production Cooperation”and“Third-Country Market Cooperation”,and in complementarity with the“Made in China 2025”and“Internet Plus”plans will lead China to develop global value chains leaded by Chinese companies and integrating countries of Europe,Africa,Asia,and South America.

A review of China’s overseas economic and trade cooperation zones along the Belt and Road:Progress and prospects

As a new mode for Chinese overseas investment and a growth pole for industrialization and urbanization of the host countries,the overseas economic and trade cooperation zone(OETCZ) or overseas free economic zone(OFEZ) of China plays an important role under the Belt and Road Initiative.With the rising attention on OETCZ,studies regarding OETCZ have also increased.However,there is a lack of studies reviewing this topic’s progress,challenges and future directions.This paper employs a systematic review to examine the literature on the OETCZ along the Belt and Road,based on domestic and overseas studies.The results show that domestic studies account for a large proportion of the collected literature,compared to overseas studies.Interdisciplinary research focus includes inductive case studies from a classification perspective,deductive studies based on cultural and institutional perspectives,trade network and bilateral trade relations based on the perspectives of international trade and regional economy,spatial planning studies from urban planning perspective,and overseas comments and earlier studies on Japan’s and Singapore’s overseas parks from the geopolitical and international political perspectives.Despite diverse research contents and dramatic progress,limitations exist in current OETCZ-related studies,including a lack of exploration of the mechanism,questions and concerns from overseas scholars,sustainable development and other problems.Future studies should broaden and deepen research insights,including the “overseas free economic zones(OFEZ)” as a general designation to cover all other types of OETCZs,studies on the primary conditions of host countries,exploration of the theoretical issues behind China’s OETCZ,comparative study of OETCZs such as management structures,profit models,environmental standards and legal systems as well as popular issues questioned internationally.

Pathways for Expediting Joint Agricultural Development of China and BRI Countries

Based on the agricultural panel data of 107 countries from 1962 to 2016,this paper establishes a global agricultural spatial production model,and explores pathways for mutually beneficial cooperation between China and the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)countries in the agricultural sector.As shown in the empirical results,two-way spillover effects between China and BRI countries are all positive and significantly above world average of its kind,which builds the foundation of cooperation between both sides and reflects the BRI’s vision and foresight.In the context of the BRI,there are two pathways for expediting agricultural development in China and BRI countries:First,both sides may benefit from greater spillover effects from each other’s agricultural growth by promoting agricultural trade;second,China may gain from the overall spillover effects from agricultural development in BRI countries by promoting two-way trade,agri-technology aid and assistance in infrastructure projects for the common good of humanity.

Clarifying Misunderstandings,Conveying the Essence

THIS year marks the sixth anniversary of the inception of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In April 2019, China will host the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing. While welcoming guests from all over the world, we also need to make clarifications on some internationally prevalent misunderstandings about the initiative.

Infrastructure Finance under the Framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)

Infrastructure connectivity is one of the cooperation priorities of the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).The construction and improvement of infrastructure means a large amount of investment as well as lots of risks.This study tries to gauge the funding needs for the countries along the Belt and Road for infrastructure investment to maintain a relatively rapid economic growth.To make it convenient for analysis,this study only projects the appropriate infrastructure investment demand of 65 countries along the Belt and Road that have relatively complete GDP statistics in recent years.And the projection result is the total appropriate infrastructure investment demand is expected to be about US$11.5 trillion between 2017 and 2021.To overcome the challenges and attract more funds to meet the large-scale infrastructure investment demand of the BRI countries,it is critical to improve the infrastructure investment environment in the region.Besides governments’functions of improving investment environment,the role of private investors is of equal importance as market rules and international norms are followed in the process of facilities connectivity construction of the BRI.

China’s Central SOEs’ Corporate Social Responsibility Performance under the BRI

How are central SOEs driven by external context and internal value chain to perform their corporate social responsibility(CSR)?What is the relationship between various types of CSR?This paper divides CSR into strategic and responsive CSR,and uses case studies to discuss how central SOEs should fulfill their CSR commitments under the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).This paper finds that under the BRI,China’s central SOEs face a host of challenges in their cross-border operations with respect to the legal environment,political risks,workforce competence,and supports to industries in host countries,and extend the value chain through industrial chain integration.All the above internal and external attributes may drive central SOEs to perform their strategic and responsive CSR initiatives,and responsive CSR could also reinforce strategic CSR initiatives.Finally,this study offers advice on how Chinese companies should perform CSR under the BRI.

Sino-GCC Relations in the Age of China “Go Global” Strategy

The Persian Gulf as a crucial region has been in the center of the global powers’strategies.China,as a growing international power,in the framework of“Go Global”strategy,has cemented its multidimensional ties with the Persian Gulf countries,particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council(GCC)monarchies during the last three decades.China has established comprehensive strategic relations with the GCC states.The GCC sultanates have also attempted to deepen their collaboration with China in different fields.The bilateral relations between China and GCC countries mainly focused on energy,economy,trade,finance,relatively politics,security,military,culture and recently COVID-19.In recent years,the Chinese Belt and Road project has deepened the relationship between China and GCC countries and has effectively contributed to the Chinese“Go Global”strategy.