XIA’N: Pomegranate, introduced to China over 2,000 years ago from Central Asia, has become a symbol of free trade propelled by the Silk Road. Now a sought-after fruit in Xi’an, the capital of northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, pomegranate-made products from Azerbaijan, one of the fruit’s main producers, drew attention at the 7th Silk Road International Exposition, which ended on Monday. The previous six editions of the Silk Road International Exposition had welcomed more than 10,000 overseas exhibitors from over 190 countries and regions, with the total value of contracts signed for foreign investment projects exceeding $45.3 billion. China has signed more than 200 documents with 152 countries and 32 international organizations on cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), covering 83 percent of the countries with which China has established diplomatic relations. The expo’s role as a platform for BRI partner countries to tap into the huge, ever-expanding Chinese market is becoming more prominent.
