The Splendor of the Maritime Silk Road: A Major Theme of Globalization Leading to the Americas

Encounters and Cultural Boundaries Between East and West： Cultural Transmission Under the Belt and Road Initiative

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences （CASS） Summit Strategy “Intercultural Communication” Key Discipline Research Group

Nanfang Daily Press

August 2023

68.00 （CNY）

Archaeological evidence shows that the Maritime Silk Road was of considerable scale during the Han Dynasty. Greek-style silverware unearthed from the tomb of the Nanyue King in Guangzhou and stone Greek columns discovered in the ruins of the Nanyue Kingdoms palace confirm the existence of the Maritime Silk Road by the end of the Qin Dynasty and the beginning of the Han Dynasty. The Lingnan region exported silk to the West in exchange for various goods， and Greek artisans came to China to participate in the construction of the Nanyue Kings Palace.

As an important channel for ancient Chinas foreign trade， the Maritime Silk Road flourished during the Tang and Song dynasties. The specific route was from the coastal ports of Guangdong， Fujian， and Zhejiang through the South China Sea， the Persian Gulf， and the Red Sea， transporting Chinese-produced silk， ceramics， spices， and tea to Europe and other countries in Asia and Africa， while Arab and European merchants brought woolen fabrics， ivory， and other goods to China.

Today， scholars widely believe that Zheng Hes voyages to the Western Seas enabled a more thorough connection of the “Maritime Silk Road” between China and countries around the world， serving as significant evidence of the historical existence of the Maritime Silk Road. The Maritime Silk Road is divided into the East Ocean Silk Road and the South Ocean Silk Road， with the latter extending west to Africa and Europe and an eastern route leading to the Americas， referred to by historians as the “Pacific Silk Road.”

Historically， there were concepts of the “Manila Galleon” and the “China Ship.” The “Manila Galleon” was named after Manila， the largest trading hub in the South Seas， where the Spanish hired Chinese craftsmen to build large galleons for transporting goods to the American colonies. Since the cargo of the Manila Galleons mainly came from China and primarily consisted of globally popular Chinese raw silk and silk fabrics， Mexicans referred to the Manila Galleon directly as the “China Ship.” This “Pacific Silk Road” wrote a splendid chapter of trade and cultural exchange between China and the Americas over two and a half centuries.

Just as we divide the history of world civilization into three historical stages driven by exchange and mutual learning --  from an era of spontaneous civilization exchange to an era of intentional civilization exchange to an era of conscious civilization exchange --  the globalization of world civilization also went through three stages， from the Silk Road to the Belt and Road Initiative. Before the year 1500， it was the ancient Silk Road with Eurasia as its carrier， leading to globalization guided by Eastern civilization; after 1500， it was globalization guided by Western civilization advancing from the sea from east to west. Entering the 21st century， globalization， led by the Belt and Road Initiative， with the community of shared human destiny as its guide， has begun.

The Silk Road and the Poetic Dwelling： Globalization Is the Result of Civilization Exchange

The development of world civilization history is driven by exchange and mutual learning. British historian Arnold Toynbee profoundly recognized this， thus continuously searched for a cultural confluence， the most flourishing place of human civilization exchange， which he called the “Poetic Dwelling.” He said， “If I could choose the time and place of my birth， I would wish to be born in Xinjiang， China， in the first century.” He referred to the region around the Tarim River and the Yarkand River as once one of the greatest meeting points of Eastern and Western civilizations.

Following significant archaeological discoveries in the Western Regions and maritime archaeology in the 20th century， American historian John E. Wills， Jr.， in his book 1688： A Global History， made the assessment， “It is only now that I have come to realize the Tarim River basin holds greater importance than both the Jordan River basin and the Rhine River basin.”

The greatest impact of the Silk Road on human civilization was not merely the circulation of goods but the spreading of cultures like seeds by the people who traversed the Silk Road， including their ideas， beliefs， technologies， and their material expressions. Thus， the Silk Road was a path of travel and exchange among various civilizations throughout human history.

Ancient civilizations such as Ancient Babylonia， Ancient Egypt， Ancient India， and China， which are the cornerstones of Western civilization， encountered each other through the Silk Road， representing the most significant civilizations in human history. Since the Age of Discovery， the civilizations of North and South America have also deeply engaged in the human and material flows of the Silk Road. Especially Central Asia， West Asia， and Eastern Europe， located in the middle of the Eurasian continent， are where the main body of the Silk Road is situated. Different civilizations met and interacted here historically， where ancient civilizations were created and flourished.

Today， we can metaphorically describe the Silk Road on the level of an organisms circulation， as the Earths circulatory system， with land routes acting as veins and maritime routes as arteries， connecting countless capillaries. This network facilitated the exchange of essentials for human material and spiritual life， ranging from silk to porcelain， animals to plants， and food to languages， distributing them like nutrients to various parts of the Earth.

From a cultural perspective， the Silk Road can still be metaphorically seen as silk cocoons and silk， where the mutual influence of material wealth and spiritual culture intertwines like numerous fine threads， weaving simple tribal systems， single-ethnic systems， and national systems into the complex structure of a community with a shared human destiny.

The history of the Silk Road is a condensed history of the world; it is the most dazzling stage of human civilization. It has not only shaped the past of humanity but will also influence the future of the world. Through this all-encompassing epic， the development process of the Belt and Road becomes clear at a glance.

Driven by exchange and mutual learning， the Belt and Road Initiative transcends and elevates civilization.

So， what is the Silk Road？ What is globalization？ Expressed in one word， it is “connectivity”. If barriers and conflicts are pain， then the Silk Road embodies the principle that “where theres connectivity， theres no pain; where theres no connectivity， theres pain.”

The civilizational value of the Belt and Road Initiative today is fivefold connectivity： policy coordination， facilities connectivity， unimpeded trade， financial integration， and people-to-people bonds， linking various industries such as transportation， energy， shipping routes， trade， and tourism of different countries， forming a large-scale system with strong radiating effects. This connectivity not only surpasses the globalization attributes of the ancient Silk Road but also transcends globalization centered around modern Western civilization.

Chinese scholars believe that the Belt and Road cooperation is an inclusive form of globalization. President Xi Jinping has pointed out that through the Belt and Road cooperation， China will carry out broader， higher-level， and deeper regional cooperation， jointly creating an open， inclusive， balanced， and beneficial regional cooperation framework. It can be said that the Belt and Road cooperation offers the public more opportunities for participation， a sense of achievement， and happiness， representing globalization for the “Global South.”

The globalization aspect of the contemporary Belt and Road initiative can be summarized into four “mutuals：” mutual connectivity， mutual learning， mutual market access， and mutual benefit.

The Belt and Road routes primarily encompass emerging economies and developing countries， with a total population of approximately 4.4 billion， accounting for 63% of the global population， and an economic output of about 21 trillion dollars， representing 29% of the worlds economy. Most countries along the route are roughly 10 to 30 years behind China in terms of overall economic and technological levels. It is estimated that the Silk Road Fund and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank （AIIB） would need to invest at least 21 trillion yuan to achieve infrastructure connectivity across the “Silk Road Economic Belt.” Since its economic reforms， China has accumulated over 5 trillion dollars in foreign financial assets.

In the next 50 years， the largest infrastructure investments in human history will take place along the Belt and Road， focusing on cultural exchange. The construction of railways， highways， tunnels， ports， electrical grids， cables， pipelines， the Internet， and the Internet of Things will surpass the total of the past 5，000 years.

The Belt and Road Cooperation for Shared Civilization： Building a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind

As humanity gradually forms a community with a shared future， the process of world civilization integration has begun. The Belt and Road Initiative aims to showcase Chinas responsibility as a major country by working with nations worldwide to provide the greatest public goods： political space for peaceful exchanges， common prosperity goals， safe modes of civilization exchange， and platforms for the development of mutual understanding.

Just three years after the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed， it has attracted participation from over 100 countries and international organizations. More than 40 countries along the routes have signed cooperation agreements with China. Over 20 countries have conducted international capacity cooperation with China， and financial cooperation represented by the AIIB and Silk Road Fund has deepened， with influential landmark projects gradually being implemented.

Many Western scholars have discovered that silk， at that a luxury item on the Silk Road time， also served as an international currency. Today， they similarly recognize the vital role of currency circulation in the process of cultural exchange; investment projects by the Silk Road Fund have begun， and the AIIB now includes over 100 member countries.

With the development of emerging economies and the strengthening of Chinas discourse power， a new round of globalization emphasizing balance， inclusiveness， and development is emerging. Driven by infrastructure connectivity， countries along the Belt and Road have gained new momentum in trade and industrial investment cooperation， leading to new economic growth points. In 2015 and 2016， bilateral trade volume between China and Belt and Road Initiative participating countries exceeded 1 trillion dollars， with nearly 15 billion dollars in direct investments by Chinese companies in countries along the route.

The Belt and Road cooperation mechanism already includes the Shanghai Cooperation Organization （SCO）， China-ASEAN “10+1”， Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation （APEC）， Asia-Europe Meeting （ASEM）， Asian Cooperation Dialogue （ACD）， Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia （CICA）， China-Arab States Cooperation Forum， China-Gulf Cooperation Council Strategic Dialogue， Greater Mekong Subregion （GMS） Economic Cooperation， Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation （CAREC）， and more.

The Belt and Road Initiative has revitalized regional and sub-regional international forums， exhibitions， and conferences， including the Boao Forum for Asia， the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum， the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation， the China-CELAC Forum （CCF）， the China-ASEAN Expo， the China-Eurasia Expo， the Euro-Asian Economic Forum， the China International Fair for Investment and Trade， the China-South Asia Expo， the China-Arab States Expo， the Western China International Fair， the China-Russia Expo， and the ASEAN-China Greater Bay Area Economic Cooperation （Qianhai） Forum. These platforms have sparked a resurgence in exploring the Belt and Road Initiatives historical and cultural heritage， with local communities along the routes uncovering and jointly organizing special investment， trade， and cultural exchange initiatives. Consequently， a wealth of cultural exchange events has proliferated， including the Silk Road （Dunhuang） International Cultural Expo， the Silk Road International Film Festival， and book exhibitions， among various other activities promoting humanistic exchanges.

The United Nations regards Chinas Belt and Road Initiative as one of the most important pillars of “Transforming our World： The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and looks forward to China playing a greater role in global development. Since April 2016， various UN bodies， including the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific （ESCAP）， The United Nations Development Programme （UNDP）， and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization （UNIDO）， have recognized and promoted the Belt and Road Initiative in multiple forms.

On March 17， 2017， the United Nations Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 2344 on the issue of Afghanistan with 15 votes in favor， calling on the international community to build consensus on aiding Afghanistan， enhance regional economic cooperation through the Belt and Road cooperation， urge all parties to provide a secure environment for the Belt and Road cooperation， strengthen the alignment of development policies and strategies， and promote practical cooperation on connectivity. The resolution emphasizes that regional cooperation should be advanced in the spirit of win-win cooperation to effectively promote security， stability， and development in Afghanistan and the region， aiming to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

The Belt and Road Initiative is a path of mutual respect and trust， a path of win-win cooperation， and a path of civilization exchange. Suppose countries along the route work together with mutual understanding and effort. In that case， they can certainly write a new chapter in constructing the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Building a community with a shared future for mankind is a grand dream of the world， and the dream of a harmonious world civilization is quietly becoming a reality.