Main Manifestations, Causes and Prospect of Leapfrog Development of China-Arab Relations in the New Era

Since their beginning in the1950s， China-Arab relations havegone through stages of getting to know each other， rectifying cogni- tion， gradually expanding friendly exchanges， steadily advancing bilat- eral relations and starting strategic cooperation. All of these stages laid a solid foundation for in-depth develop- ment of China-Arab friendly coopera- tion in the new era. From the 18th CPC National Congress on， guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy， major-country diplomacy with Chi- nese characteristics has forged ahead in the Middle East and promoted steady development of China-Arab relations. To build a China-Arab com- munity with a shared future facing the new era， in line with trend of our times and common interests of the people of China and Arab countries， will enable the two great civilizations to complement one another and make unique contributions to the cause of human progress.

MAIN MANIFESTATIONS OF LEAPFROG DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA-ARABRELATIONS IN THE NEWERA

The turmoil in West Asia and North Africa has exacerbated the peace and development deficits in the Arab world， and the long-held Middle East policy of the United States （US） has harmed theinterests of Arab countries and dragged out their revitalization. China’s invest- ment in the Middle East has continued to increase and boost Arab countries’ expansion of self-determination. In making efforts to ease the peace， devel- opment and governance deficits， Arab countries put more trust on China， raising expectations and increasing cooperation. China regards the Arab countries as mutually beneficial peace， development and civilization partners， and has implemented a series of stra- tegic measures to deepen friendship and cooperation with Arab countries. The successful China-Arab “Three-Ring Summit” in December 2022 marked the elevation of bilateral relations to a new height， specifically in the follow- ing aspects.

First， China-Arab political rela- tions increasingly deepen. All of the 22 Arab countries pursue a policy of friendship with China， having formed high-degree of political mutual trust. Arab countries admire China’s achievements， especially that of the fight against poverty， are willing to exchange governance experience with China， and give top priority to developing bilateral relations. Thir- teen of the Arab countries， includ- ing Saudi Arabia and Egypt， have established strategic partnership with China， and the League of Arab States has established Arab-China strategicpartnership featuring comprehensive cooperation， common development facing the future. China and Arab countries mutually support each other with core national interests and major concerns of one another. China staunchly supports Arab countries in their independently choosing politi- cal system and development path suitable to their national conditions， their expanding strategic autonomy， and their restoring unity and com- mitment to collective revitalization. China supports the Palestinian people in restoring their legitimate national rights， supports Arab countries in their struggle against interference in their internal affairs by forces in and out- side the region， their struggle against “islamophobia”， and joins them in the common efforts against the double standards of the West on democracy， human rights and anti-terrorism. Arab countries have withstood pressure and spoken up for justice on the ques- tions relating to China Taiwan，Xinji- ang， HongKong， democracy， human rights and counter-terrorism.

Second， China and Arab countries have forged a relationship featuring mutual economic dependence， mu- tual assistance， and mutual benefit. To carry out equal and mutually benefi- cial cooperation with Arab countries， to boost the regional development and to benefit the people of Arabcountries is one of the main objec- tives of China’s cooperation with Arab countries. By the end of 2022， twenty- one of the Arab countries and the League of Arab States signed the Belt and Road cooperation documents with China， aiming to align their own de- velopment strategies with the Belt and Road Initiative （BRI）. Arab countries are generally supportive of China’s Global Development Initiative （GDI）. Twelve of the Arab countries joined the Group of Friends of the GDI， and 16 of Arab countries joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank （AIIB）. China has become the largest trading partner of 12 Arab countries， powerfully boosting economic devel- opment of both sides. In the Belt and Road cooperation， Chinese enterprises have contracted more than 1，300 key projects in Arab countries. China and Arab countries have forged a relation- ship featuring mutual assistance， mu- tual benefit and mutual dependence in development domain.

Third， Arab countries have signifi- cantly increased their trust in China and raised their expectations for China， becoming more willing to ease the situation in the Middle East by work- ing with it. China has always firmly upheld the international system with the United Nations at its core， the international order based on interna- tional law and the basic norms gov- erning international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter， which is highly appreci- ated by Arab states. China pursues true multilateralism， opposes unilat- eralism and hegemonism， and speaks up for Arab countries in defense of fairness and justice. Judging by merits and demerits residing in given mat- ters， China participates in efforts for peaceful resolution to hotspot issues in the Middle East in a constructive way， considering reasonable concerns of parties involved， promoting peace through dialogue， and making Arab countries feel being treated objective- ly and fairly， and thus increase their trust in China. Arab countries actively respond to China’s Global Security Initiative （GSI）， wish China to play a key role on issues related to Palestine， Yemen， and Sudan， and are willing toaccept China’s mediation on relationsbetween countries having difference.China’s successful mediation for theresumption of diplomatic relations be-tween Saudi Arabia and Iran is highlyspoken of by all Arab countries. Theyhope to apply the mediation modelto other regional hotspot issues so asto further ease tensions in the MiddleEast situation.

Fourth， China’s soft power in-creasingly works in the Arab world.China’s national image showcasedin its cultural heritage， economicmiracle， poverty reduction， institu-tional effectiveness， and internationalcontributions as well as the GlobalCivilization Initiative （GCI） proposedin 2023 are generally recognized inthe Arab world. During the COVID-19outbreak， China provided sizable as-sistance to the Arab countries， includ-ing vaccines， medical teams and otheranti-epidemic supplies. Such act of de-livering timely help was highly appre-ciated by governments and societiesof Arab countries. The concepts of in-ternational exchanges advocated andpursued by China， including mutualrespect， all countries large or small being equal， and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs are highly recognized and supported by Arab countries. Just as the “hard connectiv- ity” of the Belt and Road construction reflect China’s honesty and trustwor- thiness， being pragmatic and efficient， and being down-to-earth， and even more importantly the “soft connectiv- ity” like people-to-people bonds be- tween China and the Arab world， have raised popularity of China among the people of Arab countries. From the perspective of cultural exchanges， Arab countries have actively set up Confucius Institutes or Chinese stud- ies in college programs. Over the past decade and more， tens of thousands of Arab youth have studied in China. There is sound basis for sustainable development of cultural exchanges and people-to-people bonds between China and the Arab world.

FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FORLEAPFROG DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA- ARAB RELATIONS IN THE NEWERA

Sound development of China- Arab relations in the new era is drivenby various internal and external fac- tors and become an important part of changes of the world， of our times and of history， having a profound im- pact on the Middle East in reorgani- zation of the regional forces， pattern stratigic， and orientation of future development.

First， the US has continued to re- duce its input in the Middle East to the detriment of its credibility， and become less able to control the strate- gic choice of its regional partners. The track record of the US attempting to control the Middle East alone shows that the greater its input of resources， the greater its leading role in the regional affairs， and vice versa. From the Obama administration on， the US concentrated it resources to pivot to the Asia-Pacific that led to strategic retrenchment in the Middle East. Dur- ing the Trump administration， under the banner of “America First”，the US not only asked its regional partners to contribute to a “safer US”，but also significantly reduced its input in the Middle East， being indifferent to the security concerns of its regional part- ners， and totally neglected its partners in economic distress. Since the Bidenadministration took office， the UShas tried to maintain its influence inthe Middle East at the lowest cost forprioritizing its Indo-Pacific strategyand great power competition， with itsinput of resources in the Middle Easthitting a new low since the Cold Warended.

Second， Arab countries have grad- ually returned to the pursuit of de- velopment， and sought rejuvenation through multi-party cooperation. Af- ter the turmoil in West Asia and North Africa in 2011， the severely damaged Arab countries made profound reflec- tions and came to see development as the master key to cracking all kinds of challenges. Except a few war-torn countries， almost all of the Arab coun- tries have returned to the theme of de- velopment， hoping to stabilize popular support， keep the regimes safe， and alleviate security pressure from within and without. Relying on their own strategic endowment， more and more Arab countries have begun to play an important role in transforming the regional pattern. At the same time， driven by global green transition and green development， the Arab world has made substantial readjustments to the economy， trade， investment， infrastructure， relations between sup- ply and demand for oil and gas， direc- tion of extending production， supply， consumption and value chain， export distribution of bulk raw materials， and capacity of land-sea trade cor- ridor， all of which leads to renewal of economic landscapes where China is the main external thrust. Saudi Arabia， the United Arab Emirates and Egypt have come up with theirrespective medium-term development visions. Relying on their influence on global oil-gas supply and demand chain and pricing， and leveraging their compara- tive advantage in geoeconomics and geopolitics， they wish to achieve their development goals through multi- party cooperation.

Third， China has an obvious ad- vantage in its comprehensive national strength to facilitate transition of Arab countries， whereas development pros- pect of the Arab world is more and more closely related to that of China. Arab countries look up to China’s economic strength， market space， cooperation efficiency and credibil- ity， and are ready to align their own development strategies with the BRI. Arab countries focus on cooperation with China so as to be integrated into Asia’s group cooperation with other Asian economies， which not only give sustainable impetus to China- Arab cooperation， but also effectively buffer US obstruction to China-Arab cooperation. As replacing traditional economic model with a green， digital and AI model is included in medium- and long-term development visions of Arab countries， the GCI is very well received by those countries. With historical tradition and cultural logic standing for Chinese civilization and Arab civilizations complementing one another， people-to-people bonds andcultural exchanges are widely popular.

Fourth， changes in the geopolitical environment have made it difficult for the US to suppress China-Arab co- operation. In recent years， Russia has become more closely linked with Iran and Türkiye in the Middle East， stand- ing up against the US as an equal on the regional hotspot issues. In spite of historical grievances and current stage discord existing among Russia， Iran and Türkiye， all three countries have more profound contradictions with the US. The long lasting and complex Ukraine issue has also affected US global strategic deployment and al- location of resources to certain degree. To safeguard its own interests， Europe has differences from the US policies on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Iranian nuclear talks. As China’s urging for dialogue fits its interest， Europe may not be all that cooperative with the US in the Middle East. India and Iran have upgraded cooperation in ports， energy， economic relations and trade， producing a broken windows ef- fect on US sanctions against Iran.

BRIGHT PROSPECT FOR BUILDINGA CHINA-ARAB COMMUNITY WITH ASHARED FUTURE FACING THE NEWERA

In December 2022， the China-ArabThree-Ring Summit came up with theRiyadh Declaration of the First China-Arab States Summit， the Joint State-ment at the Conclusion of the Saudi-Chinese Summit， and the Statementof Riyadh Summit for Cooperationand Development between the GulfCooperation Council （GCC） and thePeople’s Republic of China， decidingto jointly elevate bilateral relations toa higher level on the basis of strategiccooperation， and to open up a brightfuture for China-Arab relations. Asstrategic opportunities for China-Arabinteraction ought to continuouslyemerge， the prospect for a China-Arabcommunity with a shared future willbecome even brighter.

First， China-Arab political mutualtrust continues to deepen. Both sideswill actively coordinate on safeguard-ing their respective institutionalsecurity and choice of development path. With both sides facing threats to their own institutional security and choice of path， China and Arab coun- tries set great store by maintaining institutional security， and cherish the choice of path suitable to their respec- tive national conditions. As both sides mutually respect and understand one another， China and Arab countries will continue to strengthen cooperation oppose interference in their internal affairs， lining-up by ideology and double standards， and safeguard insti- tutional security and choice of path. Safeguarding institutional security and choice of pathis the key area and key content of China-Arab strategic cooperation. By enhancing strategic partnership， both sides will continue to improve the capacity of bilateral cooperation in this field. The Three- Ring Summit embodies the strategic choice of China and Arab countries to strengthen unity and coordination to meet global challenges， which will lead China-Arab States， China-Saudi Arabia， and China-GCC relations intoa new era of all-round development. This will surely have a far-reaching impact on international landscapes and regional situation.

Second， in promoting common development， advancing a multi-po- lar world and upholding international fairness and justice， China and Arab countries increasingly become mutu- ally dependable partners. The rise of the Arab world is the dream of all Arab countries and Arab peoples. Chi- na considers the rise of the Arab world an important part of the collective rise of developing countries， whereas the Arab world also supports China in realizing the great cause of national rejuvenation. President Xi made an important speech at the First China- Arab States Summit， proposing that China will work with the Arab side to advance the “Eight Major Common Actions”， including common devel- opment， food security， health， green innovation， energy security， dialogue among civilizations， training young talents， security and stability， just like a house with “4 beams and 8 col- umns” for China-Arab practical coop- eration. Both sides are committed to deepen their strategic partnership for peace and development， with huge potentials for future cooperation.

Third， the wave of reconciliation in the relations among Middle East countries has lasting resilience， and gives impetus to building a China- Arab community with a shared future. The steady development of China- Arab relations requires a favorable en- vironment for regional security， devel- opment and cooperation， whereas the wave of reconciliation in the Middle East triggered by China’s mediation for the resumption of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran signifi- cantly improves the regional environ- ment. The wave of reconciliation is not a temporary phenomenon， but a long-term trend. Seeking autonomy is a long-term strategic choice for theregional countries reaching that goal.For they need economic， trade and se-curity cooperation through reconcili-ation，and to enhance their ability toresist external interference. The waveof reconciliation is moving and willcontinue to move along four paths.Saudi Arabia and Iran have addedsustainable impetus to reconciliation.Bahrain and Egypt among other coun-tries have eased their relations withIran. Availing themselves of the op-portunity of Syria’s return to the ArabLeague， more Arab countries haveimproved their ties with the country.Türkiye has eased relations with SaudiArabia and Egypt.

CONCLUSION

It is of great strategic significancefor China-Arab relations to continueto elevate to higher levels in jointlybuilding a community with a sharedfuture. Both China and Arab countriesface the historical task of achievingnational rejuvenation and accelerat-ing national development. Under thenew circumstances， China will workwith Arab countries to carry forwardthe spirit of friendship， jointly build-ing a China-Arab community witha shared future facing the new era.Looking to the future， both sidesshould be guided by the conceptof a China-Arab community with ashared future， continue to consolidatecooperation in politics and economy，security and defense， and culturalexchanges， keep injecting impetusto new development of bilateral rela-tions， and promote solutions to re-gional hotspot issues， so as to promotethe establishment of a fair and equi-table international order， and build anew type of international relations.

Dong Manyuan is Senior ResearcherFellow of China Institute of InternationalStudies