When China first unveiled its plans to connect more than 65 countries along a modern Silk Road in 2013, the project was met with great fanfare. The Belt and Road Inititiave (BRI), as it was later renamed, was initially hailed as "the most ambitious economic and diplomatic program since the founding of the People's Republic". Beyond the pledge that it would help to turn China into a high-income economic powerhouse, Chinese officials also touted the BRI as a vehicle for transforming the country's currency into a global one.
2013年,當中國首次公布計劃將一條現代絲綢之路沿線的逾65個國家串聯起來時,這一計劃受到了媒體的大肆追捧。這項被稱為“一帶一路”倡議(BRI)的計劃一開始就被譽為“中華人民共和國成立以來最雄心勃勃的經濟和外交計劃”。除了誓言這一計劃將助推中國成為一個高收入經濟強國外,中國官員還鼓吹其將成為讓人民幣變成一種全球貨幣的工具。