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BEIJING, April 25-- Centuries ago, on the backs of camels and by ship, through sun-scorched deserts and turbulent waves, merchants and explorers traveled back and forth along the ancient land and maritime Silk Road and galvanized trade and contact between East and West. Today, China, inspired by the legacy of this historical commercial route, has proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), seeking to pool the efforts of the world to blaze a new path towards shared development and common prosperity. The initiative has reaped tangible results in the six years since its birth in 2013. It has also accumulated worldwide support. So far, 126 countries and 29 international organizations have signed up to the initiative. Flourishing BRI cooperation has over the years helped nurture faster trade and investment flows, allowed for easier financial access, and created more extensive people-to-people exchanges across Asia, Europe, Africa and beyond. There are a few reasons behind the BRI's productivity and popularity. First of all, it stems from the spirit of openness, inclusiveness and mutual benefit. Two years ago, when addressing the opening of the first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF), Chinese President Xi Jinping said, "We are ready to share practices of development with other countries, but we have no intention to interfere in other countries' internal affairs, export our own social system and model of development, or impose our own will on others. In pursuing the Belt and Road Initiative, we will not resort to outdated geopolitical maneuvering." | 
