Ever since Chinese President Xi Jinping first proposed working together to build a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, during his visit to Indonesia in 2013, the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road has made important progress. Its joint construction not only has profound historical origins, but also a solid practical foundation, which is of great value in promoting economic development and cultural exchanges among countries along the route.

Xu Xiujun, a research fellow from the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said that since China proposed the joint construction of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, countries along the route have greatly improved in the fields of marine economic development, marine scientific and technological innovation, marine energy development and utilization, and marine cultural exchanges. Practical cooperation has made important progress, and the results of cooperation have benefited countries and people along the route, all while constantly propelling the marine economy towards high-quality and sustainable development.

Xu Liping, a research fellow from the National Institute of International Strategy at CASS, said that as a core region along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, China’s Fujian Province has achieved outstanding results in cooperation with countries along the route. The province’s Port of Xiamen and its Port of Fuzhou have 18 sister ports around the world. In the future, they will gradually realize connectivity with Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, the South Pacific, Europe, the Americas, and Africa, forming an international shipping service network.

China and Indonesia are jointly facilitating the “Two Countries Twin Park” program. Fujian Province is exploring the establishment of a twin-park pairing cooperation mechanism with industrial interconnection, facility exchange, and policy reciprocity, and promoting international industrial chain division of labor and cooperation, Xu Liping continued. In addition, Longyan City of Fujian Province is jointly building a “Two Countries Twin Park” program with Serbia to expand cooperation in new energy and deep processing of non-ferrous metals. Zhangzhou City of Fujian Province is jointly building a “Two Countries Twin Park” program with the Philippines to deepen bilateral cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, science and technology, culture, tourism, and other fields.

In terms of industrial development, China has formed a marine industry system with the important pillars of marine fisheries, marine transportation, marine oil and gas, coastal tourism, shipbuilding, and marine engineering and construction. It has played an important leading role in marine production capacity cooperation with countries along the route, Xu Xiujun said.

According to data from the Ministry of Natural Resources, China’s gross ocean product rose 8.3% to nearly 9.04 trillion yuan (about $1.42 trillion) in 2021, the first time the figure crossed the 9-trillion-yuan mark.

In the joint construction of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, China has advantages in infrastructure, connections, funds, and other aspects.

“Our country has accumulated rich experience in infrastructure construction, such as experience in high-speed rail construction in temperate, frigid, and even tropical regions,” Xu Liping noted. Indonesia’s Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail, a landmark Belt and Road project, is under construction in the tropics, and will be completed and put into trial operation by the end of 2022.

Xu Xiujun elaborated on the challenges facing the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. One is development of the marine economy. At present, the economic structure of many countries along the route is relatively simple and small, with lagging agricultural and industrial productivity. Although most countries have abundant marine resources, those countries can barely benefit from them due to the lack of development technology and capacity. Under the pandemic’s impact, the problem of unbalanced and insufficient development has become more prominent. The second difficulty is governance of the marine climate and the marine environment. Global warming has led to rising sea levels and the frequent occurrence of natural disasters, posing a serious and direct threat to countries along the route with weak economic development and national governance capabilities. At the same time, problems of marine environmental pollution and ecological damage have become increasingly prominent. The third major challenge is maritime political security. To promote the joint construction of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, countries along the route need to adhere to the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and continue to deepen cooperation focusing on development, governance, and security issues.

Xu Liping suggested enhancing the Green Silk Road. Most of the countries along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road are developing countries, and it is necessary to develop clean energy, new energy, low-carbon economies, and green finance in accordance with standards suitable for local economic and social development.