China's Xi Asks ASEAN Nations to Join in Building of 'Digital Silk Road'

Xi Jinping pushed for digitally enhanced trade among Southeast Asian nations in a keynote at the China-ASEAN Expo on Friday.

Nov 27, 2020 at 9:18 a.m. UTC

Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:35 a.m. UTC

Xi Jinping, China — Chinese President Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping took the chance to push for greater digital unity among Southeast Asian nations in a recorded keynote at the China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning, China, on Friday.

The Chinese president said he would work toward greater cooperation among the 10 ASEAN nations, and promote a “digital Silk Road” in the region, according to the South China Morning Post.
The speech comes in an apparent attempt to strengthen China's position locally, after U.S. President-elect Joe Biden said he would work with regional allies to take on China's might.
Xi said, “China regards ASEAN as a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy and a key area for high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative” – a major infrastructure and economic development project underway since 2013.
The bloc could work with China to establish a “China-ASEAN digital port to promote digital connectivity, and build a ‘digital Silk Road,'" the president said.
So far there is no suggestion that the digitization proposal would use blockchain underpinnings, but Xi has previously touted the technology across the Chinese economy.
According to the report, China has been trying to build closer ties with ASEAN countries – which include the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia – amid the trade war that developed under Donald Trump.
ASEAN members were not initially universally keen on Xi’s proposed digital Silk Road, according to an international relations expert cited in the report.

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