Wade ShepardThe power and potential of the Belt and Road — aka the New Silk Road — lies in its versatility. The central route goes all the way across Kazakhstan before linking into the northern route in the west of Russia. While the southern route goes through Kazakhstan to Aktau and either crosses the Caspian Sea by ferry or goes around to Iran before going through Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey. While the north and central overland routes of the New Silk Road are currently booming, the southern one is just now becoming established. “The big problem that we face is that there are still sanctions in Russia to move perishables over from Europe to China or Europe to Kazakhstan through Russia.

Source: Forbes April 17, 2017 17:43 UTC