From Zero to Infinity

Staging the Silk Road Journey Abroad: The Case of Dunhuang Performative Arts

This paper uses data for the period 1950–2050 compiled by the United Nations Population Division together with methods including spatial autocorrelation analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis and the standard deviational ellipse, to analyze the spatio-temporal evolution of population and urbanization in the 75 countries located along the routes of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road, to identify future population growth and urbanization hotspots. The results reveal the following: First, in 2015, the majority of Belt and Road countries in Europe, South Asia and Southeast Asia had high population densities, whereas most countries in Central Asia, North Africa and West Asia, as well as Russia and Mongolia, had low population densities; the majority of countries in South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, West Asia and North Africa had rapid population growth, whereas many countries in Europe had negative population growth; and five Belt and Road countries are in the initial stage of urbanization, 44 countries are in the acceleration stage of urbanization, and 26 are in the terminal stage of urbanization. Second, in the century from 1950 to 2050, the mean center of the study area’s population is consistently located in the border region between India and China. Prior to 2000, the trajectory of the mean center was from northwest to southeast, but from 2000 it is on a southward trajectory, as the population of the study area becomes more concentrated. Future population growth hotspots are predicted to be in South Asia, West Asia and Southeast Asia, and hotspot countries for the period 2015–2030 include India, China, Pakistan and Indonesia, though China will move into negative population growth after 2030. Third, the overall urban population of Belt and Road countries increased from 22% in 1950 to 49% in 2015, and it is expected to gradually catch up with the world average, reaching 64% in 2050. The different levels of urbanization in different countries display significant spatial dependency, and in the hundred-year period under consideration, this dependency increases before eventually weakening. Fourth, between 2015 and 2030, urban population hotspots will include Thailand, China, Laos and Albania, while Kuwait, Cyprus, Qatar and Estonia will be urban “coldspots.” Fifth, there were 293 cities with populations over 1 million located along the Belt and Road in 2015, but that number is expected to increase to 377 by 2030. Of those, 43 will be in China, with many of the others located in India, Indonesia and the eastern Mediterranean.

Introduction Jessica Keough (bio) In 2013, China's president Xi Jinping announced an initiative that would set the course for much of China's foreign policy toward its Eurasian neighbors. Consisting of two parts—an overland "belt" connecting China with Central Asia, Russia, South Asia, and Europe and a maritime "road" linking Chinese ports with those in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe—the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) envisions a vast network of railways, highways, ports, pipelines, and communication infrastructure spanning the Eurasian continent and facilitating trade, investment, and people-to-people exchange (see Figure 1). In 2015, Beijing announced a plan to develop six economic corridors to advance this initiative (see Figure 2). China's leadership has rallied behind BRI, pledging substantial investment, creating new financial institutions such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Silk Road Fund, and making diplomatic commitments to countries along the proposed routes. To many observers, BRI appears to be an outline of China's ambitious new grand strategy, 1 but what do states in the region think of this initiative? The seven contributors to this Asia Policy roundtable seek to answer this question by examining how Asian states along this new Silk Road view BRI and its potential implications. Michael Clarke begins the roundtable with an essay that analyzes China's motivations and objectives. He concludes that BRI is motivated by Beijing's desire to resolve long-term domestic, economic, and geopolitical challenges by strengthening states in China's frontier regions, exporting Chinese capital and labor, and establishing an alternative to the current international order. BRI integrates these objectives into a strategy that furthers China's goal of returning to great-power status without provoking strong counterreactions. Andrew Small seeks to understand Pakistan's role in BRI through an examination of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Despite Pakistan and China's long history of an "all-weather friendship," previous joint infrastructure and economic projects have generally failed to deliver [End Page 66] Click for larger view View full resolution Figure 1. China's Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Source: "West China Seeks Fortune on Modern Silk Road," Xinhua, May 15, 2016 ≈ http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-05/15/c_135360904.htm. Originally published in Chinese in Xinhua, 2014. Reprinted with minor changes from Nadège Rolland, China's Eurasia Century? Political and Strategic Implications of the Belt and Road Initiative (Seattle: National Bureau of Asian Research, 2017), 49. [End Page 67] Click for larger view View full resolution Figure 2. The Six Economic Corridors of the Belt and Road Initiative Source: Hong Kong Trade Development Council Head Office, "The Belt and Road Initiative," January 21, 2016 ≈ http://china-trade-research.hktdc.com/business-news/article/The-Belt-and-Road-Initiative/The-Belt-and-Road-Initiative-More-Information/obor/en/1/1X3CGF6L/1X0A36H1.htm. Reprinted from Rolland, China's Eurasia Century? 73. [End Page 68] on their rhetoric. Although both sides clearly stand to gain from CPEC and some progress has been made, long-standing challenges in Pakistan provide reason for skepticism that the project will in fact meet Beijing's goals. While not on board with BRI, India is closely watching the initiative, particularly CPEC. Harsh Pant and Ritika Passi argue in their essay that pressure is mounting on New Delhi to decide whether to remain on the sidelines. India is wary of the security implications of BRI, particularly for the contested area of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and for Indian Ocean ports and sea lanes; however, China's infrastructure development projects could be a boon that increases the region's economic interdependence and gives India leverage to shape the initiative from within. India thus faces challenging decisions as BRI unfolds. Russia, by contrast, has moved from caution to an embrace of BRI, at least for now. The initiative will expand China's presence not only in Central Asia, Russia's traditional sphere of influence, but also further westward in Turkey, the Middle East, and Europe. While Moscow recognizes this dilution of its own influence, Sebastien Peyrouse argues that Russia's economic crisis and the effects of Western sanctions have left...

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1991s Central Asian nations and Japan established diplomatic relations and partnership began to increase steadily as manifested by the level of official contacts. In 1997 the “Silk Road” Diplomacy concept was formulated for Japan's policy toward Central Asia. In the beginning of 21st century we see activization of new actors including India, Korea and Japan in Central Asia, which were mainly welcomed in the region. Tokyo recognized the growing strategic importance of Central Asia in the context of international security and sought to play a more active role as an Asian nation in Eurasia. During two decades Central Asian nations and Japan partnership began to increase steadily. Japan is one of the largest assistants to Central Asia in structural reforms and Japanese investments to the different aspects of region economy and transport communication add up to several billions. There are several areas of special interest to Japan in its relations with Central Asia, including cooperation in education, economic development of the region, political reforms, as well as energy resources. Japan's effort in creating the “Central Asia plus Japan” dialog is part of its multilateral diplomacy. At the same time there are some challenges and problems in Central Asia–Japan relations. However, there are potentialities for future bilateral and multilateral relations. Japan like Korea, India and other countries has a strong positive image in Central Asia, which could be regarded as an additional factor for fostering partnership of Central and East Asia as well as interregional relation with the vast Asian continent and beyond.

In anticipating the United States' ultimate withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Obama administration has sought to enlist Afghanistan's northern neighbors within Central Asia in an effort to stabilize and invigorate the region politically and economically. In 2011 the administration proposed a Silk initiative linking the world to Afghanistan. The strategy is to enlist the country's Central Asian neighbors in a win-win scenario that will spur trade, energy exports, investment, and peace. The former Soviet stan countries, proposes the administration, will be the drivers of the new Silk Road and thereby enrich themselves while uplifting Afghanistan and ensuring regional stability. This vision is a hopeful one, yet the Central Asian states remain unpersuaded. Instead, they have preferred to paint a dark scenario of a coming Afghan spillover-of conflict and refugees, Islamist extremism and terrorism, and drugs-spreading not just to Pakistan and Iran but also northward to the former Soviet sphere and undermining the fragile stability of the post-Soviet stans.The new Silk Road initiative is presaged on multiple faulty assumptions about Central Asian interests: first, that Afghanistan and Central Asia constitute a natural region sharing a common ethnic, religious, and historical identity, and that this identity will undergird a strong regional relationship; second, that the Central Asian states will not primarily treat Afghanistan as a security threat after the U.S. withdrawal; third, that they have shared economic interests in cooperation in Afghanistan; and fourth, that such economic opportunities in Afghanistan will trump the actions and interests of Russia and China. Each of the above assumptions is extremely problematic. The post-Soviet stans are unlikely to be reliable partners in the U.S. plan for Afghanistan after the withdrawal in 2014. In reality, regime survival, border security, and concrete economic incentives-coming from China, not Afghanistan-will determine the foreign policies of the Central Asian states.In this essay, I first provide a realistic assessment of security threats from Afghanistan. Then I shift to an explanation of how Central Asian states' insecurities will nonetheless undermine a new Silk Road by increasing their cooperation with Russia and decreasing integration with Afghanistan. Next, I demonstrate that economic incentives from Russia and China are directing the Central Asian states to the north and east, undercutting trade and energy routes through Afghanistan. Finally, I discuss the political and religious crackdowns likely to be justified in terms of the Afghan threat.Afghanistan as Threat: Rhetoric and RealityThe Central Asian and Afghan populations do not share an identity despite their Silk Road roots and common religion. Soviet modernization policies set most Central Asian Muslims on a very different path, making them accepting of secular government and suspicious of the Islamic-leaning regimes of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Likewise, being Muslim and Central Asian, and sharing a Soviet legacy of both colonization and development, has not facilitated a sense of shared identity, much less cooperation, among the Central Asian states themselves. Since 1991, multiple external attempts at regional integration have either failed or remained hollow shells of international agreements.1 Mistrust among Central Asian leaders has often led these countries to the brink of armed conflict on their interstate borders and rarely fostered cooperation. The Central Asian republics-with the exception of the enigmatic Turkmenistan-view Afghanistan primarily as a source of instability, refugees, Islamist militancy, and narco-trafficking. Their fears for their security are not unfounded; the U.S. withdrawal is very likely to lead to an escalation of conflict within Afghanistan and potentially even to the collapse of the Karzai regime. Yet although there will be some spillover effects, the anticipated descent into chaos, to borrow Ahmed Rashid's term for the Afghanistan-Pakistan trajectory, is unlikely to dramatically affect the post-Soviet stans. …

Due to its geo strategic position at the crossroad of Asia, Pakistan has gained crucial importance of playing its pivotal role in subsequent human migratory events, both prehistoric and historic. This human movement became possible through an ancient overland network of trails called “The Silk Route” linking Asia Minor, Middle East China, Central Asia and Southeast Asia. This study was conducted to analyze complete mitochondrial control region samples of 100 individuals of four major Pashtun tribes namely, Bangash, Khattak, Mahsuds and Orakzai in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. All Pashtun tribes revealed high genetic diversity which is comparable to the other Central Asian, Southeast Asian and European populations. The configuration of genetic variation and heterogeneity further unveiled through Multidimensional Scaling, Principal Component Analysis and phylogenetic analysis. The results revealed that Pashtun are the composite mosaic of West Eurasian ancestry of numerous geographic origin. They received substantial gene flow during different invasive movements and have a high element of the Western provenance. The most common haplogroups reported in this study are: South Asian haplogroups M (28%) and R (8%); whereas, West Asians haplogroups are present, albeit in high frequencies (67%) and widespread over all; HV (15%), U (17%), H (9%), J (8%), K (8%), W (4%), N (3%) and T (3%). Moreover, we linked the unexplored genetic connection between Ashkenazi Jews and Pashtun. The presence of specific haplotypes J1b (4%) and K1a1b1a (5%) pointed to a genetic connection of Jewish conglomeration in Khattak tribe. This was a result of an ancient genetic influx in the early Neolithic period that led to the formation of a diverse genetic substratum in present day Pashtun.

This photo album, Youth Lens on the Silk Roads, is the result of the fourth edition of the international photo contest Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads, organized by the UNESCO Silk Roads Programme with the generous support of the Beijing International Peace Culture Foundation. This annual initiative offers young creatives from all over the world an opportunity to share their talents and explore the shared heritage, legacy, and spirit of the Silk Roads through photography. The term ‘Silk Roads’ is used to refer to a vast and complex network of maritime and land routes which have linked East, South, and Southeast Asia, to Central Asia, the Russian Steppes, the Indian Subcontinent, the Iranian and Anatolian Plateaus, and the Arabian Peninsula for thousands of years. They also stretched through North and Northeast Africa, as well as Eastern and Southern Europe, before reaching Western Europe and the Iberian Peninsula. These routes played a crucial role in shaping modern societies by facilitating the movement of people, goods, and ideas in an enriching cross-cultural exchange. Ultimately, movement along the Silk Roads resulted in the development of shared heritages and plural identities, still evident today, with the power to contribute to social cohesion, mutual respect, and understanding. The fourth edition of Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads tasked participants with exploring the themes of ‘Faith and Spiritualities’ and ‘Living Together’. Faith and spirituality concern the myriad ways we understand the world and make sense of our place within it through beliefs, values, expressions, and rituals. The photographic entries captured the vast range of faiths and beliefs exhibited in regions along the Silk Roads, while highlighting the shared nature of these expressions that bring vast numbers of people together. Likewise, the theme of ‘Living Together’ provided an opportunity to share images of intercommunity and multicultural gatherings, local and global events, and moments of dialogue. The resulting photo album presents 76 of the very best photos from the two age categories (14–17-year-olds and 18–25-year-olds) that reflect the themes and spirit of the contest. The images serve as a reminder of the shared heritage and legacy of the Silk Roads and provide insight into young people’s understanding of the ways in which they shape daily life. UNESCO Catno: 0000386140 https://doi.org/10.54678/YPAS1663 https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000386140

1. Introduction: Trends, Visions and Concepts in the Developing World between the Middle East, the Silk Road and the Lands beyond the Winds 2. New Theoretical Meanings? Transnationalism, Networks and the Authoritarian State 3. Sufis, Traders, Seafarers: Re-Considering Nineteenth Century Networks between Nusantara, East Africa and the Arab Peninsula 4. Towards the Middle Path? The Tectonic Shifts in the Islamic World 5. The Asian Tiger at the Nile: Knowledge Transfer, Modernization and Bilateral Linkages between Southeast Asia and the Middle East 6. Race, Patronage and the Hybrid Authoritarian State: Malaysia and Guyana Re-Visited 7. The Failure to Create a Networked Islamic Space: Malaysia and Central Asia in the 1990s 8. The Snow Leopard's Vision 2030: Central Asia, ASEAN and Regional Cooperation 9. Instead of a Conclusion: Khilafah, Transnational Islamic Networks and the Caliphate State in Southeast Asia

The Initiative of One belt- One Road Project consists of the Economic zone of the Silk Road and projects of 21th Century Sea Silk Road. The Antique Silk Road aims to establish a trade and infrastructure network that connects Europe and Africa to Asia beyond trade routes. For 21st Century Modern Silk Road will create new opportunities for all member states in this project. Also, China will have big advantage and economical development and the world trade productions will transport better safely, fast and on time to the destination countries. When we look at from Central Asia and Western Asia Countries perspectives, Turkic Republics are geo graphically located in the first circle of this Project. Although it is clear that China’s growing influence as an economic force will be felt globally, the most difficult of the project will be the Turkic Republics, which will take the first place in case the project is successful or fails. The increase of China’s economic influence in the medium and long term, the free movement of goods, money and labor force has the potential to disrupt the population balance of the Turkic Republics. The stability of the Turkic Republics, which is a buffer zone between Russia and China, not only for these republics, but also for Russia’s security, The preservation of the population balance of the Turkic Republics and its borders with China is not an issue to be left to the Turkic Republics only. About this subject, the fact that there is a need for close cooperation should be taken into account by Russia, Turkey and Turkic Republics. Turkey Project will finance the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which will become a founding partner, Turkey attended this Project`s Summit in China and it is interested very closely with this Project. The loss of confidence in Tur key’s western allies for the last ten years, the west has pushed Turkey to seek the support of Russia and China in balancing the world. Via Turkic Republics Turkey will connect to China, Apart from Iran through a reliable line with this project (China-Central Asia-Caspian Sea-Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey) the opportunity to reach the reunion to this new economic center of power in Asia. However, with this project China’s balance of economic, geopolitical and population influence on the Turkic Republics Turkey needs to close cooperation with Russia that is open.

In contrast to the tributary exchange in luxury textiles between China and Southeast Asia—documented by the beginning of the second millennium CE—the trade and consumption patterns of textiles at the lower levels of society in Southeast Asia have been little studied. A re-reading of textual information from Southeast Asia, China and the Indian Ocean reveals variations in textiles imported by the various sub-regions of Southeast Asia, and their links to local differences in tastes in dyeing techniques, colour palettes and weave techniques, often between markets that were located in relatively close proximity to each other. These findings, in turn, help to reconstruct the distributive patterns of products, and to suggest a possible means of highlighting ethnic distinctiveness of certain sub-regions of Southeast Asia.

Kazakhstan is a big country in central Asia. The Great Silk Road is one of the reasons people must visit the country because Kazakhstan was one of the key countries that participated in it. Nowadays, the history comes back again and the country is planning to become a destination that will be home for international and domestic tourists. Astana intends to invest $10 billion, $6 billion of which will come from private investors, and the country’s tourism planners hope that it will help to develop its tourism sector by 2020. For centuries, crowds of people speaking diverse languages filled the bazaars of Asia, and long caravans crept along dusty roads carrying precious gems and silks, spices and dyes, gold and silver, and exotic birds and animals to Europe. Yet the Silk Road was to become not only a great trade route but the melting pot of two very different civilizations; those of the East and the West, with their specific cultural traditions, religious beliefs, and scientific and technical achievements. Central Asia, situated between China and India in the east, bordering on the European world in the west, spreading between the Volga and Siberia in the north, and between Persia and Arabia in the south, for almost two thousand years stood at the crossroads of the world’s great civilizations and cultures. Kazakhstan’s tourism officials have expressed their desire to attract more international travelers. However, tourism planning needs something more than just money to attract tourists from targeted countries. A complicated visa and registration process is one obstacle already being addressed. Kazakhstan is hardly working on it, including the visa free access for Central Asian countries who participates in the Silk Road project. The Silk Road Action Plan 2016/2017 a comprehensive overview of UNWTO’s strategies and initiatives designed to help Silk Road tourism grow more robust, competitive and sustainable is being researched. It can become one of the tools that will push further the development of Silk Road

Central Asia is commonly associated with two popular concepts—the Silk Road and the Great Game. The first underlines Central Asia’s association with China and its connecting role between the East and the West; the second exemplified great power rivalry through Russia-Britain competition for control of their frontiers. Contemporary studies of Central Asia in various disciplines often rely on these two concepts to draw analogies for modern regional dynamics. While neither accurately reflects the nature of Central Asia’s position in relation to external actors, the two concepts do provide essential clues for analyzing modern Central Asia. First, after decades of isolation from each other, China and its Central Asian neighbors began interacting as independent entities. Second, the nature of the relationship between Russia and China, the two main external actors in Central Asia, is incredibly complicated, which implies that regional dynamics do resemble a ‘game’. Sino-Russian relations play an inseparable role, and an inquiry into the nature of the two major power’s engagement is essential for understanding international relations in the Post-Soviet Central Asia. The introduction highlights the institutional nature of regional cooperation in Central Asia, provides the historical background of the dynamics and motivating forces behind the major powers and their respective engagement in the region, and identifies the gap in the existing literature in order to justify the question: how does the nature of China’s and Russia’s engagement affect Central Asian regionalism?

Although rich in energy, water and mineral resources, Central Asia has remained doubly remote: not only in terms of its geography, but also due to the lack of attention in the literature. However, just as in the once Great Game disputed by the British Empire and the Russian Empire, the region is once again central in the dynamics of competition and cooperation involving regional and extra-regional actors. Indeed, today's New Great Game involves visions of Central Asian regionalism that don't always converge. Faced with different regionalist projects, namely the US Silk Road, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union, Central Asian States try to balance their own interests vis-à-vis great powers’ views and goals for the region. In this sense, this paper aims to analyse what is at stake regarding regionalism, while attempting to understand which competing project seems to be more interesting for the sake of the region’s path towards development. Keywords: US Silk Road, Eurasian Economic Union, Belt and Road Initiative, Central Asia, Regionalism

Objective: This study aims to comprehensively analyze the multifaceted impact of the Great Silk Road on the civilizational development of Central Asia, focusing on its influence on urbanization, intercultural exchange, technological progress, and intellectual life. Method: An interdisciplinary literature analysis was employed, drawing from historical, cultural, and economic sources to synthesize diverse scholarly perspectives on the Silk Road’s role in shaping the region. Results: The research reveals that the Silk Road significantly contributed to the growth of urban centers such as Samarkand and Bukhara, facilitated the spread of religious and philosophical thought, stimulated scientific and literary advancements, and supported the emergence of influential political entities. Novelty: This study offers an integrative framework for understanding the Silk Road as a catalyst of historical globalization in Central Asia, moving beyond conventional trade-focused narratives to highlight its enduring contributions to regional identity and global history. The findings also provide relevant insights for contemporary cultural and economic initiatives that seek to revive the integrative spirit of the Silk Road in modern Central Asia.


 Popular writing has brought about an image of Hindu deities that are seen as a part of Hinduism only and Hinduism is also seen as a religion of the Indian subcontinent. While this may be largely true in many cases, it forces us to look at Hinduism in very Semitic terms as a closed religion. On the contrary we see that there was a considerable travel of gods and goddesses from other religions into Hinduism and vice versa. And thus negates the idea of Hinduism as a closed system. This therefore brings us to the problem of defining Hinduism which is by no means an easy task as there is no agreement on any singular definition. Pre-modern India had more contacts with her neighbours and thus central Asia and south East Asia emerge as some of the main regions where Indian influence is seen in many aspects of life. Even to a casual observer of both central Asia and South East Asia we see that there striking Indian influences in culture, religion and other aspects of life. All of them are not part of the textual literature that has become very nationalistic in the recent past and this tends to also dismiss the earlier writings as western Eurocentric. It is true that there is a great element of eurocentricism in the earlier writings but one point that needs to be highlighted is that these earlier writings also faithfully portrayed many aspects like iconography etc. in a very descriptive manner that focused on the measurements, likeness, colour and other associated characteristics of the statues. Such trends are clearly visible in the writings of Jas Burgess,E.B Havell etc. who were influenced by the dominant paradigm in contemporary Europe of the 1850‟s where the duty of the historian was to just record. Such an approach was informed by the writings of the German philosopher Leopold Von Ranke. Though there are certain value judgments at the end of the chapter, the main narrative is a dry as dust and it is easy to decipher the characteristics or reconstruct the iconographic programme in any shrine and by extension the religious practices. In the modern period , where the dominant forms of anti-colonial struggles led to a writing of nationalist history succeeded by Marxist influenced social histories in many parts of Asia, the identification of the national boundaries and national cultures also extended to religions and many aspects were either muted or totally obliterated in history writing to present a homogenous picture. Thus, we have a picture of Hinduism and Buddhism that fits in with the national narratives. Such a collapse of categories is there in the borderland of India where the cultural boundaries are not clearly marked as also h religious boundaries. One single example that illustrates this assertion is the portrayal of Sri Lanka as a Sinhala Buddhist region with the Tamil regions of Sri Lanka marked off as separate entity and both being largely exclusive. In the Buddhist temples of Sri Lanka, one finds firstly the statue of Ganesha and later the images of Karthikeya and also the god Shani or Saturn. This image of a Buddhist monastery sharply contrasts with the highly buddhistic space of a Sinhala Buddhist temple where non-Buddhist elements are not found.