Xi hails Belt and Road at BRICS forum

By Gaurav Sharma

Xiamen (China), Sep 5 (IANS) Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday hailed the Belt and Road project at a BRICS forum here, saying that the initiative has received a good response.

India has opposed Xi's ambitious project, the artery of which -- China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) -- passes through a part of Kashmir held by Pakistan.

Speaking at the Dialogue of Emerging Market and Developing Countries where Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present, Xi said: "Four years ago, I put forward the idea of building a Silk Road Economic Belt and a 21st century Maritime Silk Road. The initiative received a warm response from the international community.

"In May this year, China hosted a successful Belt and Road forum for international cooperation.

"Together with the participating countries and international organisations, we outlined a vision for future cooperation under the Belt and Road initiative and proposed the concrete measures to support countries along the belt and road in pursuing sustainable development," he added.

India had boycotted and skipped the grand event, citing opposition to the CPEC.

"It was widely agreed that the philosophy and the vision of the Belt and Road initiative and its focus on policy infrastructure trade and financial and people-to-people contact have much in common with 2030 agenda of sustainable development," the President added.

However, the project was not mentioned in the joint declaration of the five-member bloc -- Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa -- which was released on Monday.