Case Study → China (China’s Belt and Road Initiative) (Edexcel A-Level Geography): Revision Notes
📚 Revision Notes
Case Study → China (China's belt road initiative)
| Context | ● China has a widely published economic and political plan to expand its sphere of influence ● Called the Belt Road Initiative (BRI) or New Silk Road ○ Plan projected to cost $4-8 trillion ○ Last until 2049 ● BRI consists of huge infrastructure corridors designed to ↓ China's reliance on shipping goods by sea through the narrow Strait of Malacca choke point and at the same time expand China's connections to other countries |
|---|---|
| What it will look like | ●Overland silk road → Rail links from W China to Germany, a corridor of development through Mongolia to Russia, an economic development corridor from China through central Asia to Turkey, economic corridors S through Indochina and Pakistan to the coast ● Maritime silk road → Ports, sea routes and infrastructure development around the Indian ocean ● Polar silk road → The opening of the N sea route through the Arctic ocean to Europe |
| Success | ● Would create huge wealth for some people in previously isolated parts of S and Central Asia |
| Geopolitical implications | ● Strengthening ties between China and Pakistan • making India nervous ● Strengthens China's influence in Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, Sri Lanka and Turkey which troubles the Americans ● Making China a player in the Arctic with Russia a key ally ● Tying China more closely w/ Iran, a long time adversary of the USA |
-
China's belt road initiative*