MIDDLE EAST HISTORY POLITICS CULTURE XIII MIDDLE EAST XIII | Page 185

vital for China, becauseits energy supplies do not depend on one single
country, but on the region as a whole. Also the Middle East is an arena where
China demonstrates its power as a responsible global player. In peaceful
solutions of Middle Eastern regional disputes China’s diplomacy works well
being an important part of Beijing’s national image-building strategy.
Beijing’s such kind of policy could be viewed as a contrast with its support for
national liberation movements in the region during the 1950s-1970s. 32
When speaking about China’s interests and objectives in the Middle
East, perhaps the most fundamental options are the followings: Energy
security, geostrategic ambitions, great power status, and external linkages to
internal stability. Indeed, Beijing’s continued drive for accessing the region’s
energy resources is of prior significance. 33 Since the late 1970s China’s stable
economic growth along with the country’s appetite for energy and other
natural resources is a remarkable reality, and Beijing’s number one source of
imported oil is the Middle East starting from 1995. 34
In the new eraChina is launching a long-term approach to the Middle
East, expecting to ensure its global access to resources and trade, as well as
develop cooperation with the United States on Chinese terms. Such a
strategycan minimizethe US influence in the region, meanwhile political and
economic advantageous position can turn into Beijing’s own favor.In some
degree China’s Middle Eastern policy is basedon the principle not to repeat
what China seas as US mistakes. 35 Internal crises are rocking many states, and
the Middle Eastern states are not exclusion as well. Here comes a debate
about China’s future approach towards the Middle Eastern issues. There were
developing some possible versions about this phenomenon. For instance,
would China join the West trying to prevent revolutionary upheavals? In this
case, China could automatically lose its respect and prestige among the Third
World countries. On the other hand, if Beijing continued its neutral policy
32 Liangxiang J., China’s Middle East Policy is not determined by oil, China.org.cn,
April 19, 2010. http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/2010-04/19/content_19853288.htm
33 Shulong C., Wei J., Zhongguowaijiaozhanlue he zhengce [China’s Foreign Affairs
Strategy and Policy], Beijing: ShishiChubanshe, 2008, pp. 263-264.
34 Alterman J., Garver J., The Vital Triangle: China, the United States, and the Middle
East, Washington, DC, Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2008, p. 7.
35 Dorsey J., China and the Middle East: Embarking on a Strategic Approach, China
Policy Institute: Analysis, February 23, 2015. https://cpianalysis.org/2015/02/23/china-
and-the-middle-east-embarking-on-a-strategic-approach/
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