Deutsche Welle: China’s Xi Uses Silk Road Summit to Call for Rejection of Protectionism

China’s summit on a modern-day Silk Road – encouraging infrasructure development, trade and other connections – is the antithesis to protectionism or extreme nationalism. The One Belt, One Road initiative is “a multi-year plan to build a web of infrastructure and transport links connecting Asia, Europe, Africa and other regions,” explains Deutsche Welle, adding that some countries express concern about China’s geopolitical ambitions and policies that protect Chinese firms. China’s President Xi Jinping suggested all could win through greater cooperation and openness and rejecting “exclusive arrangements and protectionism.” The German broadcaster describes Xi’s initiatives as “a counterweight to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a regional trade pact that excludes China,” which has since been shelved by the United States. At the summit China pledged to invest more than $120 billion in infrastructure projects and the China Development Bank has promised almost $900 billion for hundreds of projects. China proposes aligning the development with goals set by other international groups from ASEAN to the African Union and the European Union. India expresses concerns about increasing debt, and the EU expects more transparency and protections for labor and the environment before joining One Belt, One Road. – YaleGlobal