Opinion: Belarus is bridge on Great Silk Road from China to Europe and back

In order to develop the export of potassium and other commodity groups, in addition to diversifying ports in Russia, our country has another transit mechanism: continental transportation. Western sanctions against Moscow and Minsk were associated with pressure on China, Iran and other countries close to us. Therefore, continental transportation from Russia is of particular importance for Belarus – as Director of the European Integration Centre Yuri Shevtsov told us.

“Over the past year and a half, several logistics trends have emerged for Belarus. Firstly, we became a bridge on the Great Silk Road from China to Europe and back. This transit route is working, and we find ourselves in an advantageous position, since goods flow through Belarus, thus strengthening the importance of our country as a transport corridor (moreover, the Belt and Road Initiative is a global challenge for the US).”

The Great Silk Road is gaining momentum as Europe and China strengthen trade relations. However, this transit route is strongly influenced by the situation in the Middle East. This means that at any moment a ‘big war’ in the Asian region could again paralyse the Suez Canal (this already happened in 1967-1974). Therefore, Belarus has now acquired special significance for China and Europe.”

“Of course, it’s impossible to compare the volumes of transit through the Suez Canal and the volumes of cargo transshipment through Belarus, however, they can be compared by vulnerable commodity groups,” explained the expert.

Participation in the Belt and Road global project gives Belarus undoubted economic benefits and helps its sovereign development. Our country is subject to unprecedented pressure from the collective West. Participation in this project enables us to neutralise the negative effect of sanctions. Moreover, Belarus and Russia support the development of this Chinese initiative by combining it with other international integration formats: the EAEU, SCO, and BRICS. This helps the Union State solve the problems of modernising its economies, creating high-tech and highly efficient industries and achieving technological and economic sovereignty.