China and Silk

By Curtis Stone December 7, 2018 China went from being one of the poorest countries on the planet to one of the most powerful. China’s remarkable development has pulled hundreds of millions of its citizens out of poverty and greatly contributes to global peace and prosperity. Originally published by The People’s Daily Online, December 7, 2018 But this significant impact has also triggered a negative response in some quarters of the United States. In his book The Hundred-Year Marathon, Michael Pillsbury, director for Chinese strategy at the Hudson Institute, sounded a clarion call: China has a secret 100-year plan built on a series of strategic deceptions to supplant the United States as the world’s superpower. The rise of China, in his view, is a threat. In his book, Pillsbury writes that China experts have a duty to increase understanding between China and the United States, but ironically, his way of increasing...

This small Chinese fund, soon a foundation, has been established as a result of mutual thinking by the founders. We believe that there is a common ground between all cultures and it is important to build on that instead of on the differences. Out of the four founders, it is Ms Liu Jian from Beijing and Thore Vestby from Oslo who are running this philanthropic undertaking. Over the last two years, they have carried out a series of small projects helping young people from China to meet their counterparts in the West. And vice versa. “We believe that before they are “destroyed” by the adult world, structure and life, they can develop friendship, knowledge and inspiration across national and cultural borders”, says Ms Liu. “We believe that some of them will come into situations later in their professional lives were this early established atmosphere of understanding can be beneficial for...

Photo from Shanghai by Jan Oberg 2018   By Cecily Liu in London from China Daily October 22, 2018 Esteemed author says nation’s development model can be a blueprint for emerging economies China’s rapid growth since the reform and opening-up process began in 1978 has not only been an economic miracle for the nation, but it has also offered a new development model for other emerging economies, said Martin Jacques, author of the global bestseller When China Rules the World. In doing so, China has proved the inaccuracy of the previous consensus that the Western model of development was the only path to success. Effectively, Jacques said, China has inspired other emerging countries to explore development paths that are suitable for their own situations. Originally published by chinadaily.com “The achievements of China’s reform and opening-up are very simple: one, the transformation of China; two, the transformation of the world,” said...

(May 11- 24 November). Oberg’s project is called SPAR – Silk Peace Art Road. It focuses on the new China-initiated Silk Road BRI – culture, people, ways of living and high-tech. (BRI = Belt and Road Initiative). He will take pictures at different places, gather objects and utilize his archive photos from Shanghai to Venice – China, Myanmar, Kazakhstan, Iran, Somalia, Syria, Venice, etc. And he will seek cooperation with local artists and art institutions as part of a peace cultural dialogue along the road. This will result in three-dimensional installation of 4-5 meters in Venice which – with multimedia but mostly photography – will focus on the progress of the Orient and the decline of the Occident – a vision about a possible, better and more peaceful future. – ”In times of fake, negativity and fear, the Silk Road project (Belt and Road Initiative, BRI), is the most constructive...

The Belt and Road Initiative has turned 5 years. On September 7, 2013, at the Nazarbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan, President Xi Jinping of China launched the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This initiative – which has attracted a lot of attention from all over the world – was launched to “promote the economic prosperity of the countries, strengthen mutual learning between different civilizations and promoting world peace and development.” The historical roots, of course, is the ancient Silk Road from China through Eurasia to Europe and Africa. At the time of the mentioned speech, 60+ countries were on the list. Now, 5 years later and as the initiative gains momentum, there are more than 100 countries involved in various ways and roles. And the “Silk Roads” now points in all directions, including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, even the USA. The BRI has become a global force – a civilian...

Chinese President Xi Jinping and foreign leaders attending the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) head for the venue of the summit’s opening ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)   By Curtis Stone People’s Daily Online September 4, 2018   The 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation kicked off on Monday. At the opening ceremony, President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech that drew a warm round of applause from the audience. Xi said China will implement eight major initiatives with African countries in the next three years and beyond, covering fields such as industrial promotion, infrastructure connectivity, trade facilitation, and green development.   Originally published by The People’s Daily Online on September 4, 2018, here   In his speech, President Xi said China values sincerity, friendship, and equality in pursuing cooperation,...

. This exciting opportunity stimulated the development of a bigger idea that combines Oberg’s work for peace and art photography with a focus on the Chinese-initiated Silk Belt and Road Initiative, the largest and most visionary in today’s world in terms of linking people and cultures into cooperation rather than confrontation. In various ways the project – with the Road as metaphor – stretches from Shanghai over Myanmar, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Iran and Syria to Venice and seeks to promote cooperation and peace in the process. It’s a joint project between Oberg PhotoGraphics and TFF. The “Silk PeaceArt Road” project is made public at this very early development stage where only little funding is secured to encourage you to share co-operative ideas, share contacts you may have in China and along the Silk Road or to potential partners, artists, sponsors, art institutions, etc.   Summary in 7 elements 1. To stay...

  The United States can’t sit back and watch as China quietly colonizes the West.   By Michael McCaul Chinese President Xi Jinping is leading a Maoist Long March to achieve his dream of global power. Instead of retreating from Chiang Kai-shek’s forces, as Mao Zedong did, Xi is instead retreating from the Chinese people’s hopes for democratic reform, freedom of expression, protection of human rights, and economic liberalization. Xi is exporting his brand of colonialism with Chinese characteristics through soft power means, on a road toward achieving his hard power ends. Originally published by Foreign Policy on April 5, 2018 This was clear in Xi’s recent address at the National People’s Congress. “We are resolved to fight the bloody battle against our enemies,” he declared on March 20, “… with a strong determination to take our place in the world.” And as he embarks on a march toward lifelong...

-05/14/content_740876.htm”>China Today from May 2017 carries the main catchwords from a peace and security viewpoint: • win-win • inclusiveness • vision-based • anti-war • pro-peace (constructive) • respect for sovereignty of states • cooperative structures • common security • interconnectedness • benefits to all • respect for each other’s development path (diversity) • sharing And here some excerpts also from China Today in 2017: “As some western countries move backwards by erecting “walls,” China is contriving to build bridges, both literal and metaphorical. These bridges are China’s important offering to the world, and a key route to improving global governance. Proposed by China, the Belt and Road is for all to enjoy.” “China is not willing or able to replace or replicate the vast web of political and economic tendrils maintained by the United States, but China is trying to take the current structure and build from it a more...

With its New Silk Road mega-project, China is building on old traditions. But hard-core geostrategic interests, not nostalgia, are guiding Beijing’s investments. Miodrag Soric reports from Tbilisi, Georgia. Via dw.com When it comes to the economy, the Chinese government thinks and acts quickly. And the same is true of China’s exports. Currently most products exported to Europe are transported by sea, but Beijing is looking for alternatives, and has its eyes set on new land routes. Four years ago, the Chinese President Xi Jingping announced the mega-initiative “New Silk Road” (One Belt and One Road, or OBOR for short). This project involves various transport corridors from China to the west – for example through Russia and Belarus; or along roads and railways through Central Asia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey; or on alternative routes through Pakistan to the Indian Ocean, and from there by ship. Beijing has chosen several routes so it can pick the most...

  By the Editorial Board of East Asia Forum • One of the biggest questions in current global affairs is how a rising China shapes the world beyond its borders. The scale of China’s rise has had huge impact on the world. Size brings its own natural and inevitable influence: its economic dimension transforms nations from being ‘price-takers’ to being ‘price-makers’ in the international economy and its political dimension carries heft through political and military power. But what kind of influence will China seek, how will it seek it, and to what ends as it gets used to its new found power? These questions were central to the deliberations of the 19th Party Congress and its attempt to define a new and confident role for China in the international community. While the 19th Party Congress received notice most for its elevation of President Xi Jinping in the pantheon of China’s...

By the Chinese government • Officials said that the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiatives will be “open” to all nations and are not limited by geography. China plans to set up a scholarship for students from nations involved in initiatives to build a Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The Belt and Road Initiative is in China’s interest, and also in the interest of the rest of the world, according to experts. Via english.gov.cn China’s plan to re-build the Silk Road is “a story that we can write together to be all winners of the new economic development”. Southeast Asia is an important base for the Belt and Road initiative, and the upcoming establishment of the ASEAN Community will benefit both the bloc and its partners. Countries involved in China’s Belt and Road Initiative welcome China running schools in...