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Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, held the ‘China-Arab Cooperation Forum’ meeting in Beijing on May 30. At the meeting, President Xi Jinping will hold talks with the leaders of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Tunisia to discuss investments in these countries, the continued development of bilateral trade, and resolving the Israel-Hamas crisis.
According to an article published in Bloomberg News on May 28, this meeting will focus on the war crisis in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian issue. In the Israel-Hamas war, China has confronted Arab countries due to the Biden administration’s support for Israel and expressed support for an immediate ceasefire and recognition of a Palestinian state. Such an alliance will help China further expand its influence in the Middle East and gain new allies.
The second priority of the China-Arab Cooperation Conference is the economy. Ahead of the opening of the China-Arab Cooperation Forum, China’s Vice Foreign Minister Deng Li said trade with the Middle East had increased tenfold over the past 20 years, according to Bloomberg News. It is mentioned that it is increasing.
Gordon Chang, an American political analyst, said of the purpose of this meeting, “China is trying to become the master of the world, so it considers the Middle East to be part of it.” It has failed to make up for the losses in the United States and Europe, which do not import Chinese products. We need to export our goods to the Arab world.
According to an article published in Bloomberg News, Arab countries hope to receive equal benefits from the United States and China like emerging countries in East Asia and Latin America, but they will not enter a ‘Cold War’. “Between two countries.
Free Ekram, an associate professor at Turkey’s Hajetepe University, said the China-Arab cooperation meeting is based on the interests of both sides and that Arab countries want to take advantage of the conflict between the United States and China.
According to a ‘Bloomberg News’ article, Saudi Arabia is among the countries with close cooperation with China, accounting for 40% of trade between China and Arab countries. Crude oil is important to China, which imports more than a third of its crude from Gulf countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.
In the field of general trade, the United Arab Emirates has become a larger partner of China and played an important role in the construction of the ‘Belt and Road’. By the end of 2022, China had earned about $12 billion in direct investment.
Egypt is a country in which China is increasing its investment, and China First Automotive Group is establishing an electric vehicle manufacturing plant in Egypt. A Swiss investment bank estimates that strengthening ties between China and the Middle East will increase global energy trade by $400 billion by 2030.
As China grows its business and economic power in the Middle East, it is also expanding its political influence. If the Islamic world’s biggest rivals, Saudi Arabia and Iran, are reconciled in 2022, then in April 2024, Palestine’s old rivals, Hamas and Fatah, invited their giants to China for talks.
According to Reuters on May 30, President Xi Jinping mentioned the war in Gaza in his speech at the China-Arab Cooperation Forum and said, “China is willing to cooperate with Arab countries,” adding, “This cooperation is for peace, justice, and long-term construction.” “It will help,” he said. -Long-term stability and conflict resolution in the Middle East.”
Gordon Chang said China is actually an evil force that threatens world peace. “Xi Jinping needs peace, but he is destabilizing the world by forcing others into war,” he said. In particular, he supported the October 7 attack on Israel. 2023. Now he is his own peacemaker. Since it was China that broke the international order in the first place, China’s friends believe that only China can restore the international order. However, Israel recognizes that China supports the Israeli order. In this case, China also becomes Israel’s enemy.
The article shows that despite China’s growing economic and diplomatic influence in the Arab world, the United States still plays an important role in protecting the security of Gulf Arab countries. The United States has a new defense agreement with Saudi Arabia, recognizes Israel’s existence, and seeks to effectively utilize the role of countries like Saudi Arabia in maintaining peace in the Middle East.
Free Ekram said the Arab world would continue to rely on Western countries for defense and economy.
G42, an AI technology company based in the United Arab Emirates, recently signed a $1.5 billion contract with Microsoft, abandoning China and agreeing to develop technology in the United States. Saudi Arabia also invested $100 billion to develop artificial intelligence technology and wanted to collaborate with U.S. technology companies.
Free Ekram said Arab countries that ignore the oppression faced by the Uighurs may change their stance on the Uyghur issue in the future if China weakens.
Gordon Zhang accused Arab countries of supporting China’s genocide against the Uighurs and said, “China will never be the guardian of peace because it has clearly chosen which side it will be on this time.” “Arab countries have turned their backs on the Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other Turkic peoples,” he said. “They continue to support China’s genocide against Muslims, and history will never forget their shameful choice.”
