The Silk Road spirit followed by the Belt and Road initiative offers pioneering ideas forcontemporary international cooperation, the delegates told the People’s Daily upon thearrival of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, agreeing that theproposal will bring benefits to all.
Along the ancient Silk Road in history, people from different countries, nations, religions,beliefs, and culture backgrounds managed to share peace and development, while today’sBelt and Road initiative also eyes for common interests of en-route nations, hailedRobertLawrence Kuhn, a US investment banker.
Kuhn, who is now in Beijing for the forum, also told in a discussion on the initiative one yearago when the US presidential campaign was underway that the public will, a century later,find out thattoday’s discussion on Belt and Road far outweighs the importance of anyelection rounds.
The ancient Silk Road represents an extraordinary accomplishment in terms of its culturalsignificance, praised Helga ZeppLaRouche, chair of the Germany-based Schiller Institute,explaining that it needs unparalleled courage and efforts to build it.
She added that the silk and porcelain as well as the techniques to make them wereexported to other parts of the world along the ancient Silk Road, while in today’s world, allthe countries involved in the initiative have been provided with a chance to access to themost advanced technologies and updated knowledge.
The initiative has broughtthe world fresh development outlook and vitality in just three-plus years after it was put forward, LaRouche stressed.
What the Belt and Road initiative carries forward is a spirit that the whole mankind couldjoin efforts to realize their goals and brace for bright future, said Muhammad ZamirAssadi,reporter with Independent News Pakistan.
History has proven that the Silk Road, which honors the spirit of “peaceful cooperation,openness and inclusiveness”, has benefited all of the contributors. The en-route countriesand their public are now duplicating the history.
It is not easy for an international cooperation program to ensure an all-reaching equality,openness and respect, but the “Belt and Road” development has up to now done a good jobin this regard, Paul J. Kohlenberg, research fellow at German Institute for Internationaland Security Affairs, told the People’s Daily.
The all-shared benefits can be attributed to the tribute to the spirit of “peacefulcooperation, openness and inclusiveness” paid by China as the initiator.
China has reiterated that it will never bully smaller nations nomatter how developed it willbe, Kuhn agreed, adding that the Belt and Road initiative was based on the principle ofunited cooperation, shared development, equal-footed benefits and win-win outcomes.
The Turkish public are optimistic over the Belt and Road, said SelçukÇolakoğlu, director ofCenter for Asia-Pacific Studies under International Strategic Research Organisation(USAK) of Turkey.
Hailing China’s decision to make cooperation as the keynote of its diplomacy, Çolakoğlu saidthat if all countries could unite together for cooperation, their citizens would enjoyprosperous economy, stable politics and colorful culture through international and regionalsystems.
Some key words in the roadmap of the initiative, including “road”, “belt”, “corridor” and“bridge”, means that what the proposal pursues is equality, inclusiveness and connectivityrather than a centered or dominant position, stressed Zhao Lei, professor at Institute forInternational Strategic Studies affiliated to the Party School of the Central Committee ofthe CPC.
