Belt and Road is good for world development: Former Australia PM

The Belt and Road Initiative means a lot to countries in both Asia and Europe and even the whole world, and it could be the road that leads the world to communicate, said Kevin Rudd, former prime minister of Australia.

Rudd delivered a speech during the Thematic Session on Think Tank Exchanges of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on Sunday. He said the world is suffering unstable political conditions, as well as a slowdown of the economy. He said the Belt and Road Initiative was written into the United Nations General Assembly resolution in 2016, and it was a good start for the world's development.

"The practical content of the Belt and Road is about investment. It's about investment in infrastructure," he said, adding that Northern Australia, where there are "vast expanses of land and a smaller population", contains rich opportunities for Chinese infrastructure investors.

"The best way these things are done is through combined investment. So across the enormous potential of Northern Australia we think there are good opportunities both for Chinese and Australian investors," Rudd said.

Rudd said Chinese President Xi Jinping's speech at the opening ceremony of the forum impressed him, and he is very optimistic about the promising future of the initiative.

"History is our teacher," Rudd quoted Xi, saying like the ancient Maritime Silk Road, the new Belt and Road will be the new bridge connecting Eastern and Western countries.