Compared to his remarks at the first Belt and Road Forum two years ago, Xi’s speech appeared to be more measured and avoided talking up his signature foreign policy strategy or lavish spending pledges.

At a time when Beijing’s geopolitical ambitions face increasing international scrutiny – concerns that prompted the US and other major Western countries to shun the three-day forum – Xi tried to reassure the world that the revival of the ancient Silk Road was neither a “predatory, debt trap” nor a geopolitical tool aimed at challenging the existing US-led trade and governance systems.

Xi also tried to play down concerns that the belt and road plan was too China-centric stressing that it would benefit “all of its participants” along its fast-expanding land, sea and rail routes across Asia, Europe and Africa.

He said the plan was intended to enhance multilateralism and created a new platform to boost international trade and investment at a time when the world faces growing economic uncertainties and to improve global economic governance.

According to Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the project has been endorsed by 126 countries and 29 international organisations so far.

These include cash-strapped Italy, the first G7 country to sign up for the initiative, defying opposition from the US, Germany and France.

“The belt and road is not an exclusive club,” Xi told delegates from over 150 countries at the official opening of the summit.

In a response to complaints that Beijing has knowingly trapped many poor nations with mounting debt, the Chinese president said on Friday: “We also need to ensure the commercial and fiscal sustainability of all projects so that they will achieve their intended goals.”

Finance Minister Liu Kun said on Thursday that China would present a framework to “prevent debt risks” – a move welcomed by International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde.

Yun Sun, a China expert at the Washington-based Stimson Centre, said the event was designed to show the world and Chinese public how Beijing’s international influence was growing and highlight foreign support for Xi’s policies.

“Countries that already support the Belt and Road Initiative do not need to be convinced. Countries that have expressed concerns over the scheme will be further worried by the grandiose event,” she cautioned.

In a move to address claims that China was exporting its what critics characterise as an illiberal, heavy-pollution development model to corruption-prone nations in Africa, Central Asia, the Middle East and Latin America, Xi said that environmental protection must underpin the Belt and Road Initiative “to protect the common home we live in”.

“We must adhere to the concept of openness, greenness, and cleanliness,” the Chinese president continued. “Operate in the sun and fight corruption together with zero tolerance.”

Visiting dignitaries at the forum included Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan – a close ally of China – and leaders from all the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

While EU powers such as Germany and France sent ministers to Beijing, India and the United States did not dispatch senior officials this year.

Jassim Bin Saif Al-Sulaiti, Qatar’s minister of transport and communications who attended the event on Friday, welcomed Xi’s speech and noted the difference between that and his comments two years ago.

“Before, it’s just an idea,” he said. “Now, we think the idea is developing and starting.”

Xi also spent a large portion of his speech renewing pledges to allow greater access to overseas investors and live up to Beijing’s previous commitments amid growing dissatisfaction and impatience from the US and Europe.

He said China would keep its currency stable within a reasonable range, and would not engage in any “beggar-my-neighbour” currency devaluations, a key demand from the Trump administration.

“We attach great importance to fulfilling multilateral and bilateral economic and trade agreements reached with other countries,” Xi said,

He added that China will “standardise the behaviour of governments at all levels, clean up and abolish unreasonable regulations, subsidies and practices that impede fair competition and distort the market”.

He also announced that China would hold a second international import expo in November in Shanghai, providing a platform for foreign businesses to enter the Chinese market.

His promises followed an announcement by the White House on Thursday that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer would travel to Beijing next week for further talks aimed at reaching a deal to end the protracted tariff war between the world’s top two economies.

Jake Parker, vice-president for China operations with the US-China Business Council, described Xi’s speech as “encouraging”.

“It is useful to rehash these themes,” he said. “President Xi discusses levelling the playing field for all companies but it would have been nice to go a step further to discuss competitive neutrality for state owned enterprises.”

Wei Jianguo, a former vice-minister of commerce, said Xi’s speech had three objectives.

“First, it meant to acknowledge the initiative’s achievements. Second, it signalled that it is ready to move on to the next phase of implementation,” said Wei.

“Third, Xi used the opportunity to push for further reforms and address specific concerns by the US and the European Union as well as critics of China’s reforms and opening up.”

Steve Tsang, director of the London-based SOAS China Institute, said Xi’s speech “hit the right buttons”, but warned that it ignored the reality on the ground or the logic of what is being done in the name of the initiative.

“The issue is not if this speech sets the parameter of how the initiative will be pushed from now on but if anyone will believe it,” Tsang said.

Gal Luft, co-director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security in Washington, said the belt and road plan has become a bone of contention in the rivalry between the US and China, and both sides assessed other countries’ loyalty based on their level of enthusiasm for the initiative.

“In this respect the speech aimed to be a tranquilliser, a pushback of the pushback. Sadly, as always the poorest and least developed countries are the ones paying the price in the great powers’ tug of war,” he said.

“A big part of the problem is America’s lack of a competing agenda for global development. So what we essentially have is one side, China, offering a holistic programme yet one that doesn’t measure up to Western standards while the other, the US, is insisting on a purist agenda yet advancing none.

“It’s a classic case of the perfect being the enemy of good.”