2nd Annual Meeting of the SiLKS at Warsaw

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Source : Pakistan-China Institute   Date : 19-06-2016   By : Ahmed Lodhi 

Delegates from 30 countries, representing more than 50 think-tanks are present in Warsaw, Poland for the 2nd annual meeting of the Silk Road Think Tanks Network, commonly known as the SiLKS. Coming together for the first time in October 2015 at Madrid, SiLKS formed the first intercontinental syndicate for facilitating the revival of centuries old Silk Road under the leadership of China’s Development Research Center.

As the founder member of the SiLKS, Pakistan-China Institute is the key representation from Pakistan present at the 2nd annual meeting in Warsaw. Giving interviews to Chinese media at the occasion, Chairman of the institute, Senator Mushahid Hussain stated that “CPEC is the flagship and pilot project of Chinese President’s One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, since the Maritime Silk Road, and the Silk Road Economic Belt, which are the sea and land routes of connectivity, converge through the port of Gwadar.”

The $46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is under speedy implementation, with a sizeable proportion dedicated to the overhaul of transportation infrastructure to efficiently connect Khunjerab on the Chinese border with Gwadar Port on the continental shelf of South Asia and Persian Gulf. It must be noted that President Xi Jinping is present in Warsaw for his state visit of Poland, and has also addressed the Silk Road Forum, appreciating the joint efforts of all members in making OBOR a project of converging interregional interests. Senator Mushahid Hussain, who holds charge of Pakistan’s Parliamentary Committee on CPEC, is diligently guiding the bilateral project through the process of implementation which will facilitate the materialization of the larger One Belt, One Road initiative.