Lu Wei head of the Cyberspace Administration of China has vowed to build an online Silk Road to connect and benefit China and the Arab countries, showing that China is strengthening the role of the Internet in the Belt and Road Initiative. In a keynote speech titled "Building an Online Silk Road and Creating a Bright Future Together" at the Second China-Arab States Expo in Yinchuan, Northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region, on Thursday, Lu said connectivity is the key to the Belt and Road Initiative, and connectivity to the Internet comes first. He said a project will be launched to transform Ningxia into a hub of cross-border e-commerce and network cooperation, as well as the base for the online Silk Road.

Lu said the online Silk Road will actually be five roads: a road of unblocked information flow, a road of technology cooperation, a road of capital flows, a road of cultural and people exchanges, and a road to economic and trade prosperity.

He expressed his hope that both sides turn these five roads into a win-win online SilkRoad that can benefit the people in the two regions.

(China Daily 09/14/2015 page8)