In the eyes of Miguel Angel Moratinos, High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) proposed by China is visionary and very timely, able to help boost the common development of human beings.
Moratinos, a veteran diplomat and former Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, replaced Nassir Abdulaziz al-Nasser of Qatar as UNAOC High Representative on Jan. 1.
All the way through a recent exclusive interview with Xinhua, Moratinos gave thumbs up to the BRI.
"It is a way of how to understand the challenges of today's world. One of the ways was to really reinforce the communication, interconnection and understanding among different countries, nations, cultures and civilizations."
On March 15, 2016, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2274, calling for strengthening the process of regional cooperation, including through regional development initiatives such as the "Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road" initiative.
UN officials say the initiative is compatible with and helps push forward the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Moratinos stressed in the interview that the BRI "has been able to address the majority of the issues that are essential for the development of human beings."
Statistics show that over the past years, the initiative has received positive response and support from more than 100 countries and international organizations.
UNAOC was established in 2005, as the political initiative of Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General and co-sponsored by the governments of Spain and Turkey.
UNAOC aims to improve understanding and cooperation among nations and peoples across cultures and to reduce polarization at local and global levels. It helps develop more inclusive societies, in which diversity is experienced as an asset.
Noting that all civilizations add radiance and beauty to each other, the UNAOC chief said the BRI can help enhance people's awareness that all civilizations can live in peace side by side with more exchanges of goods, cultures and people as well.
In response to criticism from some western countries that China is creating "debt traps" for some African countries in its efforts to promote the BRI, Moratinos said people can criticize anything, but criticism must be based on facts and have "a real element."
During the interview, the veteran diplomat repeatedly expressed his wish to strengthen cooperation with the Chinese government.
