Not long ago, Western policymakers were writing the obituary of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). That verdict is now dangerously obsolete. The stark reality of 2025 has shattered the narrative of a Chinese retreat. Far from a quiet dissolution, BRI project values have now rebounded and eclipsed their 2016 peak . New data shows that in a staggering show of fiscal and geopolitical resilience, BRI projects reached $213.5 billion across regions and a wide array of sectors last year. This