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Opinion | China’s belt and road projects are not enough to give it sway in the Middle East
- Tensions over the attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities threaten belt and road projects in the Gulf and China’s oil lifeline – and reveal Beijing’s lack of soft power and strategic influence
- To have a say among the regional powers of Iran and Saudi Arabia, China will have to consider an increased military presence and diplomatic activism
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
The United States bluntly accuses China of using investments and concessional loans to align recipient countries with its geopolitical agenda. Recent cruise and drone attacks on critical Saudi oil installations, which Riyadh and Washington have blamed on Iran, actually tell a completely different story – at least as far as the Middle East is concerned.
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The Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s massive infrastructure plan to improve connectivity and boost trade across Eurasia and beyond, has not enhanced China’s soft power and strategic influence in the region.
The scheme is meant to create a China-centric system of political and economic relationships that can compete with the US’ unique network of alliances and partnerships. However, the Chinese are still a long way from that goal.
China has urged restraint from all sides involved in the confrontation in the Gulf area, which is the minimum required for a great power, but has so far been unable (or unwilling) to leverage investments, loans, credit lines and inducements to influence regional dynamics.
Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shiite Muslim Iran are arch-rivals in the Middle East, and this is a problem for China. Iran is a strategic partner of China, and a beneficiary of belt and road funds, while Saudi Arabia is China’s largest oil supplier. So, Beijing must walk a fine line between both countries in the tense scenario.
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