China, Russia pledge belt and road infrastructure integration as Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin lay out blueprints
- Chinese, Russian leaders present visions for coordinated projects along major transport routes within the Belt and Road Initiative framework
- Heightened cooperation in both countries’ interests as geopolitical uncertainties loom and sanctions bite
Despite cascading geopolitical unrest throwing global development prospects into doubt, President Xi Jinping pledged on Wednesday to extend the global infrastructure network under his Belt and Road Initiative, and Russian president Vladimir Putin vowed to strengthen the initiative’s integration with his own plans for Eurasia.
Russia, which has long held considerable influence in the area, has been building a range of projects complementing China’s initiative and sees the belt and road strategy as aligned with its vision for Eurasian partnership, Putin said after Xi’s speech.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping unveils 8-point vision for nation’s Belt and Road Initiative at forum
The two leaders were speaking to representatives from 140 countries at a gathering marking the 10th anniversary of the belt and road plan, at a time of great global uncertainty, with the US-China rivalry intensifying, the war in Ukraine continuing and the crisis in Gaza worsening at a rapid pace.
In response, Putin called the belt and road plan a “success”, listing a number of projects that were initiated by the Eurasian Economic Union, and emphasising how the economic union of several post-Soviet states and belt and road scheme complement each other.
Among them, the West Siberian Railway and the north-south corridor connect the Baltic Sea with the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean.
Russia is not just inviting its partners to actively use its transit potential
