Related publications: Development aid, peacebuilding and the Global South

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is the result of a convergence of multiple Chinese domestic drivers and external developments. It holds significant potential to contribute to greater connectivity and stability in participating states, yet there is a need to include a wider spectrum of local and international stakeholders in order to address concerns and mitigate backlashes.

The policy report The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road: Security Implications and Ways Forward for the European Union presents an analysis of the sea-based component of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the Road. The report complements the February 2017 SIPRI–Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung publication on the land-based component of the BRI, the Belt. The previous report examined security implications in two of the strategic terrestrial regions that the Belt traverses: Central Asia and South Asia.

Energy transition is an essential element of the global effort to meet the objectives set out in the 2016 Paris Agreement on climate change.

China and the European Union (EU) have agreed to work together to help deliver the financing needed to achieve energy transition, but more is needed.

This SIPRI Insights Paper provides a preliminary assessment of China’s attitudes to and policies on Afghanistan since the August 2021 Taliban takeover. It examines the scope of China’s security, economic and humanitarian interests, and the depth of its engagement so far.