"We decided to help 're-weave' the Silk Road," said
Wim Westerhuis, senior representative of the International Road
Federation (IRF), during the Third International Silk Road
Conference being held from Tuesday to Thursday in Xi'an, Shaanxi
Province.
The IRF envisages modern road links connecting the
heart of China and the industrial centers of Western Europe.
"It is not simply a highway, but a network of roads
facilitating trade between two major economic powerhouses,
enhancing the development of landlocked Central Asia and making its
markets more accessible," Westerhuis said.
The ambitious plan has caught the attention of 12
countries, including China and South Korea. Top-level
transportation authorities from participating nations have already
begun discussions.
Building a new Silk Road transportation corridor
would make it easier and more convenient to cross borders, said Ju
Chengzhi, director of the Ministry of Communications' International
Cooperation Department. China's communications ministry oversees
the nation's highway transportation and shipping.
Chen Deming, managing vice governor of Shaanxi
Province, noted that in accordance with the central government's
plan to push economic growth in western China, the vast inland
region needs more ways to communicate with the rest of the
world.
"Rebuilding the Silk Road from Xi'an to Rotterdam
is in the interests of both East and West," Chen said.
Westerhuis stated that the IRF has continued to
promote the Silk Road's restoration despite the five-year gap since
the last conference in Uzbekistan. He said that wars and political
turmoil in areas along the project route could only temporarily
delay progress.
The International Road Federation, established in
1948, is a nongovernmental and nonprofit global organization
comprising 70 governmental and corporate members. It participates
extensively in road construction and financing.
The IRF believes that with the spectacular economic
growth in China, with the EU increasingly looking outward and with
the continuing development in Central Asia, the need for a road
network along the Silk Road route is growing increasingly
apparent.
Some countries, such as China, have already made
substantial progress in the construction and rehabilitation of the
road links within their territories, while others lag behind,
according to Westerhuis.
"Our purpose is to promote the development of the
whole region," he said.
The Third Silk Road Conference, co-sponsored by
China's Ministry of Communications, the IRF and the Shaanxi
provincial government, is held to enhance regional transportation
cooperation and discuss the rejuvenation of the Silk Road and
construction of transport infrastructure.
The First International Silk Road Conference was
held in 1998 in Turkmenistan and the second was in Uzbekistan in
1999. Xi'an was selected as the site of this year's conference as
it was the starting point of the ancient Silk Road. The city is now
the capital of Shaanxi Province.
Financial entities such as the World Bank, Asian
Development Bank and APEC are also attending the
conference.
(China Daily October 27, 2004)