For much of the past ten years, Beijing has systematically expanded its influence into the Middle East, particularly through its Belt and Road infrastructure and investment initiative. It seeks, according to Eyck Freymann, to become a major player in the region while minimizing its investment of blood and treasure. And while it has not yet started to challenge the U.S. directly, Freymann argues that its ultimate aim is to gain at Washington’s expense:
If China’s goal is to achieve influence without entanglement in the Middle East, the Belt and Road is succeeding brilliantly. The list of countries that have endorsed the initiative and committed in one form or another to partnering with it includes Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. That alone should be a wake-up call to Washington. These countries agree on almost nothing—but they all want closer ties with China.
Most problematic for U.S. national interests is the strategic partnership between China and Iran. Iranian domestic politics is divided between a moderately pro-China reformist faction and an ultra-pro-China hardliner faction that has enthusiastically embraced the Belt and Road. . . . China has made large purchases of Iranian crude oil and sold telecom supplies to Iran, in violation of sanctions, and it is currently negotiating an agreement for Jask, a port outside the Strait of Hormuz.
The two countries were supposed to conduct joint naval exercises in the Indian Ocean last week. (China pulled out at the last minute, citing its New Year’s holiday.) Whether or not the money materializes on the promised timetable, the expectation of Chinese backing will induce Tehran to drive a harder bargain in nuclear negotiations with the Biden administration.
[Moreover], the United States has an extremely important interest in preventing China from backing Hizballah and hostile Shiite factions in Iraq that threaten U.S. allies and assets in the region. China did not unleash the torrent of investment in Lebanon that Hizballah requested last summer, but the United States should continue to communicate to Beijing that it will face costs if it backs Hizballah.
Read more on Foreign Policy: https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/02/25/influence-without-entanglement-in-the-middle-east/