If he were alive today, Darius the Great would have cheered the commissioning by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in March of a new railway connecting their countries. The fifth century Persian king was able to dominate much of West Asia in part because he understood the strategic importance of transportation and organized one of the world’s first highways: the Royal Road. The route spanned all of modern-day Iraq and Turkey, and cut messengers’ travel times by a factor of 12.
May 10, 2017
China’s biggest diplomatic event of the year was on May 14–15, when President Xi Jinping welcomed leaders from 28 countries and delegates from 110 countries at the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing. For expert insights from Christopher K. Johnson, Matthew P. Goodman, and Jonathan E. Hillman click here.
May 9, 2017
The Belt and Road’s expansiveness is a double-edged sword. Chinese officials can highlight individual successes and, pointing to a long roster of participants, they can claim international support. Beneath its global banner, though, the Belt and Road is mostly bilateral deal-making.
May 9, 2017
The polar regions are an important zone for China’s emergence as a global power. China has long-term strategic interests in the Arctic and economic interests are part of the reason why China is drawn to be active there, though not the sole factor. There has been a lot of international debate and media coverage of China’s economic interests in the Arctic; however, relative to the government’s strategic agenda, China’s major companies have been slow to take up the opportunities available to them in the polar regions and are still relatively weak in polar equipment and expertise.
May 9, 2017
The world’s awareness of petroleum resources in the Arctic soared in 2008 after an assessment from the United States Geological Survey indicated that 12.3 percent of global undiscovered oil resources and 32 percent of gas resources could be found there. The analysis was widely misinterpreted to reflect offshore reserves and created the perception of a huge untapped potential that was becoming more accessible because of the ice melt. It resonated strongly in China, which worried about soaring energy needs and over-dependence on the Middle East.
Apr 18, 2017