Wong MNC Center "The Political Economy of China's Maritime Silk Road Initiative (MSRI), Africa, and the Middle East" Conference a Big Success

On November 18 and 19, 2017, the "Political Economy of China's Maritime Silk Road Initiative (MSRI), Africa, and the Middle East" conference was held in Shanghai, China. The conference, orchestrated and co-sponsored by the Mr. & Mrs. S.H. Wong Center for the Study of Multinational Corporations (Wong MNC Center) and hosted and co-sponsored by the School of Advanced International and Area Studies (SAIAS) at East China Normal University (ECNU), attracted scholars and attendees from more than a dozen countries including China, Iran, Kenya, Netherlands, the US, the UK, Russia, Ukraine, Singapore, and Turkey. Opening speeches were given by Dr. Jean-Marc F. Blanchard, Executive Director of the Wong MNC Center, ECNU SAIAS Dean LIU Jun, and ECNU Office of International Exchange Director Dr. Zhou Yunxuan. The conference keynote speech was given by Dr. DING Yifan, Senior Fellow, Development Research Center, State Council of the People's Republic of China who spoke about China's reasons for advancing the MSRI. The conference featured rich presentations such as "China's Maritime Silk Road Initiative 5 Years Later," "China's Belt-Raod Initiative as a Grand Strategy of Top-Level Design," "The Gulf Cooperation Council in the Maritime Silk Road Initiative," "Maritime Silk Road and Expanding Iran-China Relations," "From FOCAC to BRI," and "The Singular Position of Djibouti." The conference also entailed some energetic discussion about numerous issues including the status of the MSRI, host country reactions to it, the implementation of China's endeavor, and the political and economic impacts of China's MSRI.