Carry Forward the Spirit of Silk Road Akhal-teke Horse for a Win-Win Future

Speech at the Great Silk Road -Towards New Developments Forum

By Lu Jianzhong

Deputy to the National People's Congress of P. R. C. and

Chairman of the Silk Road Chamber of International Commerce

Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan

2 May 2018

Your Excellency President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

Good morning!

I am honored to attend the Great Silk Road–Towards New Developments Forum, and I’d like to congratulate, on behalf of the Silk Road Chamber of International Commerce, the grand opening of the forum and the launching of Turkmenbashi International Seaport.

First, I must pay my utmost respect to Your Excellency Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.

In 2013, during his visit to Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Initiative of Jointly Building the Silk Road Economic Belt. It has corresponded well with the initiative proposed by Your Excellency for the Silk Road rejuvenation, thus representing huge bilateral cooperation potentials between China and Turkmenistan. Under Your Excellency’s leadership, Turkmenistan has become one of the early countries participating in the B&R construction. The Amu Darya Natural Gas project, regarded by Your Excellency as a symbol of energy cooperation between China and Turkmenistan, is a powerful proof of the win-win relationship between our countries and a major achievement made under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Your Excellency has announced 2018 the Year of Silk Road. And in your New Year greetings, you expressed the determination to continue with construction of highways, railways, seaports and bridges in Turkmenistan as contribution to the revival of the Silk Road in the third millennium. This afternoon, we will attend the Launching Ceremony of the Turkmenbashi International Seaport. The port stands as an important project for Silk Road connectivity as well as a milestone for trade cooperation between Asia and Europe, the launching of which will enhance the overall economic development of Turkmenistan and the region.

Now, please allow me, on behalf of SRCIC and our 117 state-level members from 75 countries, to pay the utmost respect to Your Excellency for your devotion to rejuvenating the Silk Road and promoting regional connectivity.

Second, carrying forward the Spirit of the Silk Road Akhal-teke horse. Over 2000 years ago, when Zhang Qian, the great explorer of the Silk Road returned from his journey to the Western Regions, he said the Regions were home to an amazing breed of horses that sweat blood. What he referred to is the Akhal-teke horses originated from Turkmenistan. In May 2014, Your Excellency presented a golden Akhal-teke horse to President Xi Jinping. As a national treasure, Akhal-teke horse is a symbol of the long-lasting friendship between our two countries, and an embodiment of the Spirit of the Silk Road, which stands for steadiness, determination, and perseverance. In the new era, we must carry forward such valuable spirit and add new dimensions to it as we promote the cooperation between China and Turkmenistan and implement the Belt and Road Initiative.

Third, addressing global issues and challenges by strength and wisdom synergy. The inevitable trend of economic globalization has facilitated trade growth, investment and labor flows, and technology development. Modern international trade and investment are praised for their ability to optimize resource allocation through global labor division and connectivity, thus benefiting all participating countries.

Regretfully, in recent years, trade protectionism and anti-globalization sentiments are on the rise putting one country’s interests over that of other countries, and unilateralism and isolationism are gaining ground. These have jointly jeopardized multilateralism and multilateral trade system, and exacerbated instability and uncertainty of the global economy.

Belt and Road Initiative is a golden key that promotes economic growth through cooperation, eliminates trade barriers through connectivity, and unites people through development. It is a powerful driving force for global economy recovery, and a great practice for building a community of shared responsibilities, benefits, and a future. Let us continue our journey on the new Silk Road to strengthen pragmatic collaboration and to further explore cooperation potential in energy and transportation. Let’s also join hands to seek peace and progress by replacing the cold world of wars and walls with a peaceful, open, and warm one. This way, we can break new ground in promoting an open, inclusive, balanced, and win-win economic globalization.

By integrating resources of its millions of enterprise members from 75 countries and using platforms like eSilkRoad, Silk Road International Development Fund, Silk Road Commerce and Trade Expo Park, SRCIC will make a positive contribution to engaging Turkmenistan in the Belt and Road projects to share the benefits. SRCIC would like to join efforts with business associations from all over the world to uphold an open and win-win principle, to participate in global economic governance, and to safeguard economic globalization and free, open and non-discriminatory multilateral trade rules. We will further liberalize and facilitate global trade and investment, enabling all countries to share opportunities and benefits and to realize common development and prosperity.

In this October, we will hold 2018 Silk Road Business Summit in Zhangjiajie, a scenic city in Hunan Province, China, where the movie Avatar was shot. I would like to take this opportunity to cordially invite you all to attend the event and have in-depth discussions with political, business and academic leaders from the Silk Road countries for further business cooperation between us and for a global economic prosperity under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Thank you!