Sociological Discourse Analysis of the Concept “One Belt, One Road” Context

Abstract

From the standpoint of sociological discourse analysis and reflective sociology the article examines the context of the “One Belt, One Road” concept based on some of the speeches of the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping from 2013 to 2021. Since the first mention of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road by Li Keqiang in 2013, there has been some transformation of the concept, in particular, it was supplemented by an overland economic project, and the name “One Belt, One Road” (Belt and Road) was stuck behind it. The concept has come to be associated with the name of the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping as its initiator, in whose discourse it sounds quite often. Of particular interest is the analysis of the biographical data of Wang Huning, member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, who is considered one of the authors of the concept under study and Xi Jinping’s advisers. The academic background, the experience of communicating with the American intellectual elite, as well as the scientific interest in the study of European philosophical concepts led to sociological reflection, which influenced not only the semantic content of the Belt and Road, but also the foreign policy of China as a whole, the priority of which is European.