The first objective of this lecture is to understand what the “Silk Road” was: a physical communication network linking the East and the West since 2,600 year ago, mainly by land but also by sea. We will describe its origins, rise and decline at the end of the Middle Age.

The second objective is to describe the OBOR (One Belt, One Road) initiative: a € 900 Billion project where China is committed to build a “New Silk Road”, based on the same paths of the historic Silk Road. We will briefly explore its “terrestrial leg” (One Belt) but the focus will be set on the “maritime leg” (One Road), considering the social, economic and political impact that China is producing on its surrounding areas as the country grows.

The New Silk Road, in the end, is nothing else than an attractive name to describe the attempt of China to become the ruling power at global level by 2050, challenging the USA as global leader.

We will describe the growing confrontation between China and the USA in different battlefronts: The Trade War between both powers, with its implication on the financial and on the monetary side, where the yuan is trying to challenge the dollar as global reserve currency.

We will also comment the growing fight among both countries, especially in the telco sector (the Digital Silk Road), and how Africa is becoming a special battlefront where China is taking the lead, in order to capture a market of more than 1.3 billion people with a high growth potential, and to secure access to the vast resources provided by a continent of 30 million square kilometers.