| Summary/Abstract |
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), ostensibly a connectivity and developmental
program, was launched by the Chinese President Xi Jinping with the primary
objective of connecting the common people in Asia through trade, infrastructure
and culture. The initiative is designed to enhance connectivity in areas such as trade,
infrastructure, investment, capital and people. That said, since its inception, the
project seems to confront certain hurdles such as regional geopolitical complexities
and launching of other alternative proposals that tend to hamper its progress. As
part of the BRI, the BCIM–EC proposes to connect eastern China with South Asia
that will also ultimately connect Southeast Asia through different modes for better
economic and cultural connectivity. This paper attempts to evaluate the challenges
and opportunities of the BCIM–EC project in the context of South and Southeast
Asian nations. The paper concludes that the challenges are rather overriding.
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