Opportunities and challenges coexist for the implementation of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In terms of challenges, the security of Chinese investment in host countries is the leading aspect that should be paid attention as BRI is an economic program. The sole purpose of the New Silk Road which is part of BRI is to achieve greater economic cooperation between its partners through the establishment of infrastructure on a continent and global scale. Therefore, the investment environment is the main concern of Chinese investors. According to Guo, Chinese enterprises should take the trend of the world economy, the political situation of the host countries, the regional and global unrest, terrorism and natural disasters into consideration. Apart from that, the problem of the degree of solvency or even bankruptcy in the host country is becoming more and more urgent for Chinese investors. When talking about this incident, Mr. Guo stressed that Chinese investors will not be discouraged by the risk of bankruptcy of the host country, because the infrastructures built or under construction are mainly fixed assets whose value will increase over time and the benefits could be shared among the investors and host countries if they would like to buy back the stake in the future. When it comes to the support of the host country’s political leaders for protecting the BRI framework investment, Guo clearly stated that “the new Silk Road is an economic project rather than a geopolitical strategy”. Consequently, security is not in the agenda of BRI and thus Chinese investments need support offered by the host countries, the third countries private security forces and the correct risk assessment. After five years practicing, China is facing power transitions in some host countries, certain Western mistrusts and lack of local knowledge. Mr. Guo provided a series of recommendations taken from an assessment of the first five years of the New Silk Road on safety. Chinese investors, in fact, should make a macro and micro risk analysis, build relationships with a greater number of local partners and, above all, adapt to resolve the critical issues that arise with Belt and Road projects according to the local legal framework, in order to consolidate the next five years of the New Silk Road.
*This article is the summary of GUO’s interview by the Italian Institute for International Political Studies. See full article at: https://www.ispionline.it/en/institute.
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