01Mar 2021
International Workshop "China's Belt and Road Initiative: curse or blessing for democracy in Eurasia?"
05:24 - By Brigitte Weiffen - Events
From 12-14 March 2021, RC34 held the international workshop “China's Belt and Road Initiative: curse or blessing for democracy in Eurasia?”, hosted by the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and organized by Brigitte Weiffen (The Open University, Milton Keynes, and Chair of RC34) and Anja Mihr (OSCE Academy Bishkek).
Workshop description:
China's New Silk Road Initiative (Belt and Road initiative, BRI) has been spinning its logistical and infrastructural web around the world since 2013. Massive infrastructural investments in tracks and roads as well as in the agricultural and energy sector and logistical centers were made in over 50 countries in Eurasia. BRI is a central component of Chinese investment policies that have affected core public policy areas in over 100 countries in the world. Almost a decade after the official launch of BRI, this workshop assessed its political implications. Contributors discussed the impact that BRI has had, willingly or not, on democratization or autocratization processes in the countries and societies that it invested in, ranging from Europe to the Middle East, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia.
Due to the developments and regulations related to Covid-19, the workshop took place as an online event.
Download program as PDF: Workshop BRI 2021.
Video of the workshop with selected presentations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtT1zKH7rgs&t=0m00s
Full program with video links: https://osce-academy.net/upload/file/BRIWorkshop_Programme.pdf
Conference report in the OSCE Academy Paper Series - direct download as PDF: http://osce-academy.net/upload/file/2.pdf