A century ago, Sir Halford Mackinder, the British geographer and politician credited as the father of western geopolitics, asserted that: “Who rules East Europe commands the Heartland; Who rules the Heartland commands the World Island; Who rules the World Island commands the World.”

Mackinder’s theory captivated generations of geo-strategists who saw Eurasia as the “heartland” of the world’s most populous and pivotal region. More recently, however, it has prompted needless scepticism about China’s new Silk Road initiative, which will weave its way westwards through Eurasia on both land and on sea.

Some question whether this is a bid by China for greater land and maritime power in response to the US pivot to Asia. Others wonder whether it is driven by economic self-interest — a bid to offset overcapacity at home or to secure a bigger say in the global financial system.