[1/5] Chinese President Xi Jinping greets Russian President Vladimir Putin as they attend the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Forum (BRF), to mark the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, October 18, 2023.
Putin and other foreign leaders sat with key Chinese officials from the 25-member Politburo on the front row, as Xi delivered his opening speech.
The forum centres on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a grand plan launched by Xi in 2013, that envisioned building global infrastructure and energy networks connecting Asia with Africa and Europe through overland and maritime routes.
Western scepticism of Xi's grand plans stems from suspicions over the way it would extend China's global influence, analysts say.
Xi is pushing to make the Belt and Road smaller and greener, moving away from big-ticket projects like dams to high-tech ones such as digital finance and e-commerce platforms.
Persons:
Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Edgar Su, Xi, Putin, BRI, Viktor Orban, Haji Nooruddin Azizi, Antoni Slodkowski, Simon Cameron, Moore
Organizations:
Initiative, of, People, REUTERS, Rights, Forum, EU, Washington, Thomson
Locations:
Beijing, Rights BEIJING, Tiananmen, Asia, Africa, Europe, China, Western Europe, United States, Ukraine