Abstract (eng)
The New Silk Road Project is supposed to guarantee China's continued
economic growth and to create new markets in Central Asia and Europe through the massive infrastructural development. In the course of this Chinese expansion westwards, the development of China’s central and western provinces, which until now have lagged behind the booming megacities on the east coast, become first priority to the Chinese government. Xinjiang, being the westernmost and largest autonomous region in China, is populated by the ethnic, Muslim minority of the Uyghurs and has vast reserves of natural resources. In consideration of the province’s important bridging function due to its favorable geographical location, Beijing now focuses on the economic, social and infrastructural development of Xinjiang, as well as on foreign relations with its neighbors, especially Kazakhstan and Pakistan. Here, Xinjiang occupies a key position as an intermediary to foreign countries and as an economic hub for trade between China and the West. In addition, the town of Kashgar, located in southern Xinjiang, is the gateway to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor connecting the region with the strategically important Qwadar Deep Sea Port, through which China gains access to the Persian Gulf. The improvement of security along the Chinese border to the unstable neighbor Afghanistan is also a key objective of the project.
The implementation of Silk Road 2.0 goes hand in hand with the social exclusion of the Uyghurs through increasing sinofication, as well as the destruction of their cultural heritage that is being replaced by Special Economic Zones and modern skyscraper buildings. Xinjiang's economic and infrastructural development through the resurgence of the Silk Road has already begun. Their long-term effects on the Uyghurs and China's foreign policy are not yet foreseeable.