Tajikistan is not attending a two-day International Belt and road Forum that is concluding in Beijing, China today.
Leaders from 29 countries are participating in the forum.
Few Western leaders are attending the summit, although Britain, France, and Germany are represented by top finance officials. The United States sent a senior White House adviser.
Also attending the summit are Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyaev.
The two-day summit is showcasing Chiense president’s One Belt, One Road initiative, a revival of the ancient Silk Road trade route, first unveiled in 2013.
Speaking before an audience, Chinese President Xi Jinping assured Western diplomats that the plan was not simply an attempt to promote Chinese influence globally, according to world media reports.
He has called for closer cooperation across Asia and Europe in areas from anti-terrorism to finance
President Xi has reportedly pledged US$124 billion in funds for the initiative, which seeks to connect China with Africa, Asia, and Europe through a network of ports, railways, roads, and industrial parks.
“In advancing the Belt and Road, we will not retread the old path of games between foes. Instead we will create a new model of cooperation and mutual benefit,” Xi was cited as saying by Xinhua.
President Xi also pledged $8.7 billion in aid to countries and international organizations that participate in the Silk Road plan. Xi said the project was open to everyone, including those in Europe and Africa.
Russian President Putin, speaking at the opening of the summit, told participants that protectionism was a threat to the global economy.
Putin also complained about “illegal sanctions,” a possible reference to a series of Western sanctions imposed over Moscow's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.
Russia supports One Belt, One Road project and will participate actively in it, as it is important that integration in the Eurasian space is based on generally recognized rules and transparency, Putin ws cited as saying by TASS.
According to him, creation of a belt of economic development and mutually beneficial trade between Asia and Europe seems to be an urgent and important initiative that takes into account the current trends in the world economy, and reflects the overall need for coordination in diverse integration processes in the Eurasian continent and in other regions of the world.
