Скачать или смотреть China-MENA Relations: Looking Back and Envisioning the Future

China’s engagement with the Middle East and North Africa is growing significantly, particularly with Algeria, Egypt, Iran, and countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Beyond forging bilateral relations, Beijing has also used plurilateralism— such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF)— and ‘partnership diplomacy’ to cultivate its relationships. Most MENA countries have agreed to participate in China’s transcontinental Belt and Road initiative (BRI), prompting concerns among some western powers. As the MENA region contends with fiscal challenges of the COVID-19 fallout (twin crises for hydrocarbon exporters), it is unclear whether Chinese ambitions and engagements will expand at the same pace in the coming years.

Panelists explore the strengthening economic ties between China and MENA countries, and their geopolitical and cultural implications.

How do historical factors drive China-MENA relations today? How balanced or asymmetric are relations between China and MENA countries? Beyond hydrocarbons, which sectors are the most important to commercial ties? Is Chinese activity in the MENA digital space problematic for allies in Europe and the U.S? Will Beijing’s growing economic interests prompt a more significant political (and security) engagement in the region? How is ‘soft power’ used between the two sides and has it been effective? How will the fallout of COVID-19 impact BRI projects and China-MENA relations?”

More about the panel: https://www.international.ucla.edu/cm...