2 the silk road economic belt components of the initiative; and( b ) in some cases, the context specifically requires reference to the BRI. Security in the context of the report is defined broadly in relation to intra- and interstate stability. It includes developmental factors and encompasses human security. 1.1. Defining the scope and aims The Belt is a Chinese proposal to interlink the countries and economies of the Eurasian continent through a range of projects focused first and foremost on infrastructural development and connectivity, and coordination of national and regional development plans. In essence, the Belt intends to( a ) expand and connect transport networks and markets;( b ) disperse and improve Eurasian production capacity; and( c ) facilitate the transit of goods, capital, energy, raw materials and—to some extent—information, people and culture. It plans to do this through substantial investments in road, rail, port and aerial infrastructure, along with ancillary facilities such as power grids, energy pipelines and high-speed fibre optic cables. Chinese authorities claim that cooperation through the BRI could involve some 65 countries, some 63 per cent of the current world population and an increasing, yet undefined, share of the world’s gross domestic product(GDP). 2 In addition, the initiative could contribute, directly or indirectly, to many if not all of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)(see Annex I), although this ultimately depends on the quality of the BRI’s implementation. 3 The March 2015 white paper,‘Vision and Actions on Jointly Building Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road’, the most comprehensive official policy on the BRI issued to date, has clarified general integration goals. The Belt’s five major goals are to promote:( a ) policy coordination,( b ) facilities connectivity, ( c ) unimpeded trade,( d ) financial integration, and( e ) people-to-people bonds(the ‘five connectivities’). 4 In China’s view, connectivity and co-development are common interests and keys to peace and prosperity. 5 More concretely, the Belt is related to six planned economic corridors stretching outwards from China throughout Eurasia, some of which merge with the Road. 6 In the European Union(EU), these corridors end up in Rotterdam, Hamburg, Prague and Madrid. 7 Some of these economic corridors, as well as related components or projects, had already been proposed, planned or completed prior to the Belt announcements, but have been subsequently subsumed into the Belt. However, the Belt is also progressing through a range of investment projects unconnected to infrastructural and transport corridors, ranging across a variety of economic sectors(see figure 2.1. and figure 2.2.). Beyond outwards investment, there is also a strong domestic component to the Belt. One case in point is the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which is deemed to be a 2 Wu, J.,‘“One Belt and One Road”, far-reaching initiative’, China–US Focus, 26 Mar. 2016,<http://www. chinausfocus.com/finance-economy/one-Belt-and-one-road-far-reaching-initiative/>. 3 Hong P.,‘The“Belt and Road” towards the Sustainable Development Goals’, 15 July 2016,<http://blog.sina.cn/ dpool/ blog/s/ blog_9cc0e6840102x6ig.html?t y pe=-1&f rom=timeline&isappinsta lled=0>. 4 Chinese National Development and Reform Commission,‘Vision and Actions on Jointly Building Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road’, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Chinese Ministry of Commerce, 28 Mar. 2015,<http://en.ndrc.gov.cn/newsrelease/201503/t20150330_669367.html>. 5 See e.g. President Xi Jinping’s Remarks at the Fourth Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia(CICA), May 2014,<http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/topics_665678/yzxhxzyxrcshydscfh/ t1162057.shtml>. 6 The six planned economic corridors are the China–Mongolia–Russia Economic Corridor(CMREC), the New Eurasian Land Bridge(NELB), the China-Central Asia-Western Asia Economic Corridor(CCWAEC), the China– Indo–China Peninsula Economic Corridor(CICPEC), the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC), and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor(BCIMEC). 7 These are proposed corridors and termini as found in Chinese state media: they are semi-official and subject to change.