Maritime Silk Road initiative to reduce friction

Robert Lawrence Kuhn, chairman of the Kuhn Foundation of the US, gives a speech during the summit forum of the international seminar on the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road held in Quanzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, Feb 12, 2015. The seminar opened here on Wednesday.[Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - Even a not-so-close scrutiny of the maritime Silk Road proposed by China will allow the observer to know that the route passes large areas in the South China Sea.

With China laying bear its concepts and intentions of win-win development, common prosperity and cultural inclusiveness in initiating such a route, it is believed that the project will also be helpful in solving disputes on the much-hyped "troubled water."

With its primary function as a trade route, the Maritime Silk Road will promote common development of the region and boost Asia's role as an important and sustainable engine for the growht of global economy, for the project entails hardware improvements which is crucial for the economic upgrade.

What's more important, the benefits does not stop there. More frequent exchanges of people, commodities and ideas will lead to better understanding between trading partners, as proven by the original Silk Road that spans Asia, Africa and Europe.

The proposal put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping to rejuvenate the ancient trade route reflects China's earnestness to spur regional growth and share development opportunities with neighbors and far-away partners as well.

The idea was echoed many times at a two-day seminar that concluded Thursday in China's eastern coastal city of Quanzhou, once the world's largest trading port that even dwarfed the glamour of Alexandria in Egypt as showed in historical data and accounts of renowned travellers like Marco Polo.