13 May 2024

China’s Digital Silk Road Taking Its Shot At The Global Stage – Analysis

Evan Williams

The rise of China has strengthened its resolve to challenge global markets and the United States’ technological hegemony. China has developed into the largest exporter of goods, responsible for almost 30 per cent of manufacturing worldwide. As part of this development, China has united various foreign policy objectives through economic statecraft, using loans and investments as political bargaining chips.

A key part of China’s strategy is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a multitrillion-dollar projectthat facilitates investments in foreign countries. It gambles on risky yet comprehensive loans for developing countries to build key infrastructure.

Yet China’s attention has recently shifted to its rapid expansion of a BRI offshoot — the Digital Silk Road (DSR). The DSR targets digital technologies in developing countries by offering cheap alternatives to Western data systems and security. The DSR is a paramount US concern due to its potential security threats and its challenge to US hegemony.

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