Belt and Road Initiative to deepen China’s engagement with world
Shares
SARAJEVO: The Belt and Road Initiative is yet another example of China's constructive engagement with the world, Igor Crnadak, foreign minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), said Friday.
The BiH top diplomat told Xinhua in a written interview that countries along the Belt and Road will "most certainly benefit not just from the infrastructural projects but also from the Chinese expertise, which will intensify trade and bilateral relations."
The minister is going to attend a Belt and Road forum in Beijing in mid-May. The event, which is to gather many heads of state and government leaders as well as top-level officials, is "an excellent opportunity for countries to reaffirm their commitments to free and fair trade which is lately increasingly under threat," he said.
The Belt and Road Initiative, comprising the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, was proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 with an aim to revive ancient trade routes to link China with numerous countries in Asia, Europe and Africa through trade and infrastructure networks.
As Crnadak sees it, the bilateral relations between BiH and China, which are based on equality and mutual respect, have been very good.
BiH has already benefited greatly from the Belt and Road Initiative and there is more space to intensify cooperation between the two countries, he said.
"Besides increasing trade and investment, I would say that there is a need to work more on our scientific cooperation through exchanges in research and development since BiH can learn a great deal from the Chinese experience at this stage of development," he said.
"Also, it would be greatly beneficial to both countries to intensify our people-to-people and cultural relations, through academic visits and tourism."
The BiH top diplomat noted that BiH has always been a supporter of multilateralism and maintained that the only real solution to global issues is through diplomacy.
"Therefore, we not only strongly support Chinese President Xi's vision of creating a community of shared future for mankind, but we believe that China can constructively bring a more harmonious world through its calm diplomacy and defense of free trade and stability in regions across the world," the minister said. (APP)
