A Silk Road for the Twenty-First Century?
Many of the proposed projects will be delayed or never built, but those that are will transform the region.
Many of the proposed projects will be delayed or never built, but those that are will transform the region.
While the Belt and Road Initiative has the potential to fund valuable new transit infrastructure, it also risks stirring domestic political competition, fueling networks of graft and rent-seeking, and not fulfilling its transformative potential.
If decades of torrid growth have been the opening scene on Asia’s economic stage, the region’s reconnecting—through new roads, railways, and other infrastructure—could be the next act.
Obstacles Formidable but not Insurmountable
The South Caucasus in a Reconnecting Eurasia examines the full scope of South Caucasus–Eurasia relations and analyzes the broad outlines of U.S. engagement over the coming years. It is part of a four-part CSIS series, “The South Caucasus in a Reconnecting Eurasia,” which includes studies focusing on Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the South Caucasus.