China's president Xi Jinping lauds Belt and Road at a smaller, greener summit

Xi told hundreds of delegates from around the world that Belt and Road has boosted the flow of goods, capital, technology and human resources into the countries involved.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said at the Belt and Road Initiative Summit on Wednesday that the cooperation has progressed from "sketching the outline into filling in the details," and that the "blueprints turned into real projects".

Xi told hundreds of delegates from around the world, including Russia's Vladimir Putin, at the opening ceremony in Beijing, that Belt and Road has boosted the flow of goods, capital, technology and human resources into the countries involved.

Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a grand plan launched by Xi a decade ago that he hopes would build global infrastructure and energy networks connecting Asia with Africa and Europe through overland and maritime routes.