Twenty-one courts of Chinese cities along the Belt and Road signed judicial cooperation agreements in Lianyungang, East China’s Jiangsu province, on July 17 to assist with Asia-Europe joint rail and water transportation in which the city is a key link.

With the promotion of the Belt and Road Initiative, personnel and trade exchanges along the Belt and Road are becoming more and more frequent, leading to increasing demand for judicial cooperation.

The agreement aims to boost cooperation between courts including joint actions, emergency cooperation, risk elimination and multiple dispute settlement mechanisms.

According to the agreement, the courts will work to set up judicial information exchange mechanisms, jointly promote court informatization and smart courts , and strengthen mutual judicial assistance.

Wang Shumei, an official of the Supreme People's Court, pointed out that a sound judicial environment is necessary for Belt and Road construction. There must be a focus on having multiple dispute resolution systems including arbitration, mediation and trials available to create a stable and predictable legal environment for international economic exchanges.

It’s necessary to build a fair and just business environment and provide judicial service and guarantees to promote Belt and Road construction and help build an open world economy, according to the Measures concerning the Establishment of the Belt and Road International Commercial Dispute Resolution Mechanism and Institutions issued this year.