Chinese transnational corporations participation in the implementation of the Digital Silk Road initiative on the example of Central Asian countries

Abstract

Assessments of the drivers of the Belt and Road (BRT) have often focused on the emerging political, economic ties between China and the rest of the world, strengthening the country's integration into international institutions, or building traditional "hard" infrastructure (railroads and ports). However, developments concerning the digital or "soft" aspects of BRT have tended to be overlooked. Therefore, this paper emphasizes the role of the Digital Silk Road (DSR) in analyzing how China uses economic state management in its initiatives to achieve technological superpower status. It is argued that the DSR demonstrates a distinctive model of state-business interaction in which Chinese companies participate in the realization of the country's ideals. One manifestation of this appears to be the presence of Chinese companies in Central Asia. The author believes that the reasons for investing in the region are political rather than economic.