Since President Xi Jinping proposed building the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, a series of supporting systems have been established and the international community has responded proactively.

The ancient Silk Road was opened by China. Now, with its ever-increasing economic power, China is creating a new Silk Road. This economic corridor, which covers both the Asia-Pacific region and Europe, will realize a multi-dimensional connection between nearly 60 countries and regions in the area. In the future, these countries and regions will complement each other’s strengths in economic development, improving standards of living, addressing the financial crisis, and restructuring the economy. The spin-off impact will exert a profound influence on the global economy.

According to He Maochun, director of the Economic Diplomacy Research Center of Tsinghua University, the sum of China’s investments in foreign countries has now approached or surpassed total foreign investment in China. Chinese capital, productivity and talent need to go abroad. This is the only route that can lead China to becoming a world power.

The Belt and Road Initiative has been the main tasks of China’s economic work for the past two years. Meanwhile, a series of supporting systems have been established. Last April, China proposed to establish the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). In October, 21 Asian countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding on establishing the AIIB. During the Beijing APEC meetings in November, China announced that it would contribute $40 billion to set up the Silk Road Fund.

According to statistics released by China’s Ministry of Commerce, in the first 11 months of 2014, the total contract value and implemented value of outsourcing contracts between China and the other Silk Road countries are $10.6 billion and $8 billion respectively.

The Belt and Road Initiative has been warmly welcomed by Silk Road countries. In the past year, over 50 countries have participated actively in the program and volunteered to connect with each other in developing strategies.

The Belt and Road initiative covers over 60 percent of the world population and nearly 30 percent of the global economic aggregate. This longest economic corridor will have a profound influence on the future global economy. He Yafei, deputy director of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, says that the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative reflects China’s active participation in global governance and top-level regional design, and dedication to maintaining world peace and promoting mutual development.