The Prequel to China's New Silk Road

This book offers the prequel to China's successful implementation of its New Silk Road, the so-called Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The preconditions for the establishment of especially the land route between China and Western Europe have been set decades ago in Central Asia. In the political, security, and economic realms, China had to find arrangements with Russia as well as the Central Asian states. Border disputes had to be resolved, a security architecture and political cooperation was lacking. The key to BRI's success today lies in China's successful diplomacy of the 1990s and 2000s. This book tells the exciting story behind the largest geopolitical infrastructure project of our time.

Provides a deeper analysis of the current state of the 'Belt and Road Initiative' and its security threats and logistic challenges Illustrates the potential impacts of Sino-Russia cooperation in Central Asia on international relations Explores the legacy of the Soviet Union in the 21st century

Autorentext

Tilman Pradt is a geopolitical analyst and consultant based in Berlin. His research focus is on China's foreign policy. He is a supervisor and contributing analyst at the geostrategic analysis and business consultancy, Wikistrat, and works as a senior advisor for companies and business associations. He writes for various international publications and his book, China's New Foreign Policy was published in 2016.

Inhalt

1. Introduction.- 2. The Setting: geopolitical situation in the 1990s and 2000s.- 3. Introduction to Shanghai Five (SCO).- 4. Territorial Disputes in Central Asia.- 5. Progress of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).- 6. Economic Cooperation among SCO Members.- 7. Security Cooperation among SCO Members.- 8. Key Players in the Belt and Road Initiative.- 9. Status Quo of BRI & Outlook.