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This book examines China's relations with member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council.It highlights the depth of China's ties with the region bilaterally and multilaterally on a five-dimensional approach: political relations, trade relations, energy security, security cooperation, and cultural relations.

This book provides a detailed analysis of China's foreign policy towards the Gulf and Arabian peninsula region from the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 to the end of the 20th century. Based on extensive original research, it looks at the relations between China and each of the countries of the region over the entire period. It demonstrates that two key factors have shaped China's foreign policy with the region - China's relations with the United States and the Soviet Union, and China's drive to increase its economic ties with the countries of the region, especially after becoming a net importer of oil in the early 1990s.

Few issues in international affairs and energy security animate thinkers more than the classic topic of hegemony, and the case of the Persian Gulf presents particularly fertile ground for considering this concept. Since the 1970s, the region has undergone tumultuous changes, with dramatic shifts in the diplomatic, military, and economic roles of the United States, China, and Russia. In this book, Steve A. Yetiv and Katerina Oskarsson offer a panoramic study of hegemony and foreign powers in the Persian Gulf, offering the most comprehensive, data-driven portrait to date of their evolving relations.The authors argue that the United States has become hegemonic in the Persian Gulf, ultimately protecting oil security for the entire global economy. Through an analysis of official and unofficial diplomatic relations, trade statistics, military records, and more, they provide a detailed account of how U.S. hegemony and oil security have grown in tandem, as, simultaneously, China and Russia have increased their political and economic presence. The book sheds light on hegemony's complexities, and challenges and reveals how local variations in power will continue to shape the Persian Gulf in the future.

China has grown increasingly dependent on imports of oil and, as a consequence, has become a major and very visible player in the international energy markets. For a country which has traditionally been strongly committed to the principle of self-reliance, this dependence on foreign oil has been a source of vulnerability and anxiety. But it has also been a strategic opportunity for China to chart its own ambitions and objectives as a global economic and political actor. This article addresses the various ways in which China has incorporated its energy import needs within its foreign policy. There are, it is argued, three dimensions to this. There is, first, integration and cooperation with the West and other large oil-importing countries and a shift away from neo-mercantilism to a growing reliance on international markets. Second, there is a complementary strategy of balancing, which seeks to develop the energy resources close to its borders, in Russia and Central Asia, which are not so vulnerable to western intervention. And third, there is the construction, though preliminary and nascent at the moment, of a hegemonic order which challenges the US and the West in the critical maritime routes from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean and through to the Persian Gulf region.

China has significantly enhanced its position and interest in the Persian Gulf region over the past 25 years, making it an important newcomer in regional dynamics. Evidence clearly shows that it has expanded, in some cases dramatically, its diplomatic contacts, economic ties, and arms sales to regional states. This represents a novel development which is likely to accelerate in the future as China's dependence on Persian Gulf oil grows. China's rising position in the region has put Beijing and Washington at odds and could generate serious friction points in the future. Policy recommendations are sketched to avoid such an outcome.

The Iranian nuclear energy program has remained a contested issue since the early 1990s, dividing international community into two opposing camps. On the one side, the US and its major partners argue that Iran's nuclear program is not for peaceful purposes and if Tehran insists on nuclear development, punitive action must be taken. On the other side, China and Russia maintain that a difference between nuclear technology for civilian and military purposes must be made. Thus, they argue, whereas all nuclear proliferation activities by non-nuclear countries must be prevented, states should be allowed to acquire nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. China, a major power in the opposing camp and Iran's largest energy partner, emphasizes that nuclear proliferation activities must be separated from trade in energy and that a rules-based mechanism must be set up to deal with the Iranian nuclear issue. This paper offers a comparative analysis of the US and Chinese policy toward Iran's nuclear energy program, attempting to shed light on the features of the two distinct approaches to what it calls the Iranian nuclear dilemma. It maintains that the disagreement stems from China's principle-based and economics-driven Persian Gulf strategy which conflicts with US hegemony-based and security-driven policy to the region. It holds that while the Iranian nuclear dilemma requires China to take steps to safeguard its energy interests in the Persian Gulf, it also provides Beijing with the opportunity to promote its vision of international governance based on harmony and mutual respect.

From 1978 to 2005, China's economy has grown at the unprecedented rate of 9 percent a year, and continues to grow. With this economic development comes increased demand for petroleum, and China is behind only the United States in consumption of oil and natural gas. This demand for oil has led China to turn to the Persian Gulf, which contains 55 percent of the world's proven oil supply, to meet its energy needs. This article looks at China's relations with the Persian Gulf countries and its attempts to create economic interdependence with them through investment, arms sales, and trade, thereby securing a supply of oil. The paper also discusses the issue of Chinese competition with the United States for petroleum supplies from the Persian Gulf and the difficulty involved in balancing the needs for Iranian oil and U.S. cooperation in economic and security issues. Adapted from the source document.

China's ongoing economic development has encouraged its government to engage in Middle Eastern politics and foreign relations. The mutual exchange of science, technology, financial investment and other trade can be beneficial for both regions, providing China with an enhanced presence in the international community and an opportunity for cooperation within Middle Eastern nations.