China’s economic interests in the “One Belt, One Road” initiative

¹ Doctor of Economics, Professor, Ural State University of Economics, Head of the University, Department of Regional, Urban Economy and Management, 62, 8 Marta St., Ekaterinburg, 620219, Russian Federation
² Doctor of Economics, Professor, Ural State University of Economics, Head of the Marketing and International Management Department, of.465, 62, 8 Marta St., Ekaterinburg, 620219, Russian Federation
³ Professor, University of Trento, Department of Economics and Management, via Inama 5, I - 38122 Trento, Italy
⁴ Ural State University of Economics, Senior lecturer of the Marketing and International Management Department, of.755, 62, 8 Marta St., Ekaterinburg, 620219, Russian Federation

^* Corresponding author: lakapustina@bk.ru

Abstract

The article examines the “One Belt – One Road” initiative of China aimed at the development of transport and logistics infrastructure on the trade route from China to Europe. The authors pay special attention to the history of the Silk Road, which serves as an ideological basis for the modern initiative. The scale of the new project allows the authors to expect that its impact on the international trade will be comparable with the contribution of the historical Silk Road to the development of the global economy as we know it. The authors analyze the prospects of the development and implementation of the initiative in terms of China’s economic interests. The most significant threats associated with the initiative are identified.