The Fifth Silk Road International Exposition opened Tuesday in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, with deeper Belt and Road economic cooperation one of the hot topics on agenda.

Themed "Interconnection, Contribution and Shared Benefits," the expo has attracted more than 1,900 envoys and guests from 98 countries and regions such as Belgium, the Republic of Korea, Tajikistan and Zambia.

The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013, aims to build trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and beyond along the ancient Silk Road trade routes for common development and prosperity.