| This paper focuses on València,UNESCO City of Silk 2016's prospective role in the One Belt,One Road initiative constantly shifting between a macroperspective of the Silk Road(Europe-Asia)to a microperspective(ChinaValència),since both initiatives share common goals and are rooted in the ancient Silk Road narrative.We zeroed in on people-to-people bonds due to the fact that the Valencian Country as a region and València as a city do not have a say in any of the other focus areas,which are controlled by the Spanish State and ultimately by the European Union.We also touched upon the Port of València's role in the Maritime Silk Road,drawing a comparison to other Mediterranean ports such as the Port of Venice or the Pireus.Current negotiations with COSCOSC(the merged entity of China Ocean Shipping(Group)Company(COSCO)and China Shipping(Group)Company(China Shipping)are secret but València has the potential to become the Western Mediterranean megaport for China's Maritime Silk Road,competing only with the new megaport in Cherchell,Algeria.In order to understand the connection to the present initiatives taking the Silk Road's name and the potential synergies between them we first had a look at the past.Thus,we clarified what the Silk Road was and its impact on València.We started by deconstructing the romantic depiction of a single,unidirectional Silk Road and then demonstrated the importance of silk production in the Kingdom of València through the centuries.We contextualized the Valencian silk industry in Europe contrasting it with other kingdoms in the Iberian Peninsula and Europe.Next,we briefly went through UNESCO Silk Road initiative's history and objectives,zeroing in on València's candidacy as well.We highlighted China's leading role in The Chang'anTianshan Corridor from Central China to the Tianshan Range's candidacy to UNESCO World Heritage Sites and Xi'an-based Tang West Market Cultural Industries Investment Group's support of the UNESCO Silk Road Online Platform.A sizable part of this paper consists of an analysis of València,City of Silk 2016's execution enumerating the main events and highlighting the ones linked to China's One Road,One Belt initiative.From civil society to academia and the business world we identified all actors involved and listed the ways in which they have been involved in this initiative.We look at UNESCO Silk Road in the European Union and Spanish framework in order to better understand València's position within the program.It is also worth mentioning that in order to make this paper more accessible we had to explain the four levels of government that work in València from the Spanish State,to the Valencian Country Regional Government,the Provincial Deputation of València and València's City Council.We paid special attention to the presence of Chinese diplomats in these events since this shows the level of commitment to Sino-Valencian exchanges by the local government(s).In fact,València has decided to emphasize the elements of our culture that came from China through the Silk Road and are still now the backbone of Valencian culture in order to promote people-to-people bonds.Rice,oranges,silk clothes,kites,porcelains,and fireworks are considered quintessentially Valencian,so educating both old and new generations of Valencians on our Chinese heritage and how it travelled along Eurasia is in line with the 2013-2022 UNESCO International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures and also works the other way around for Chinese people.Of course,these Sino-Valencian people-to-people bonds will eventually be monetized,looking for the benefit of both parts.Having shown all the events organized and actors involved,we proceeded to critically evaluate this initiative based on facts and not promises.Hence,we looked into how efficiently the initiative has been managed and then contextualized both the positive and negative outcome taking as a reference what other European countries have done but also what València herself has done prior to this initiative and how it has affected it.The positive outcome of this initiative can be seen in the signing of a protocol that will conclude with the twinning between the cities of Xi'an and a collaboration agreement between the Gansu Provincial Tourism Administration and the Valencian Tourism Agency.València's future in the One Belt,One Road century will be marked by its presence in a series of Silk Road networks of universities.2016 was a milestone in this direction since the Universitat de València became the only Spanish and Valencian university that has joined the Silk-Road Universities Network(SUN),where among other important Chinese universities Shanghai International Studies University is a Member of the Board of Directors.On a negative note,we must point out the scarce funding that València,City of Silk has received.There are many reasons that we can trace back but the main two are a series of mismanagement cases and poor investments in international sports events and pharaonic constructions that have led to València's huge debt,an approximate of €800 million in 2014.On top of that,The Generalitat,València's Regional Administration has been the main source of funding for this initiative,!contributing 80% of its budget;the Spanish central government has only contributed 12% of the funding.This reflects the current underfunding of the region,a historical debt that amounts to a total of €13,500 million since 2002 and is based on the difference between the percentage of the Spanish population living in the region and the percentage of the state budget that is intended for it over the years.This is a burden that stops the region from fully embracing the One Belt,One Road initiative and limits the decision-making power.As a result,we have offered an in-depth view of the synergies that have been seized and the weaknesses of this program.Pinpointing both positive and negative outcomes of this project we aimed to help all actors involved develop more synergetic actions in order to bring both initiatives closer in a win-win cooperation style. |
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