Liang Yabin, senior researcher at the Pangoal Institution and an associate professor at the Party School of the Communist Party of China Central Committee / CHINA DAILY

For historical and ideological reasons, there have been many attempts to play up the so-called China threat, casting a shadow over China's peaceful development and even fueling concerns about the Belt and Road Initiative. It is vital that Beijing translates its soft power into a language that can be understood by the rest of the world, like the "lean, clean and green" governance championed by the AIIB.

To carry out its Belt and Road ambitions, China needs to disseminate its geopolitical perspective to relevant countries. China should make it clear that the pursuit of the transnational initiative go beyond ideological and cultural differences, and that its peaceful rise will not come at the cost of other countries' interests.

Translating the Chinese narrative of shared development into a universal language is a viable solution to geopolitical misunderstandings and will expedite the promotion of the initiative.