China and Gulf Cooperation Council Countries: From Economic Deals to Strategic Partnerships

The Middle East in general and the Persian Gulf sub-region in particular are becoming increasingly strategic for China. The sub-region is not only rich in natural resources, primarily energy, and to a large extent provides them to the dynamically developing Chinese economy, but also opens up access to main global maritime and land routes, as well as African and European markets. The study focuses on China’s interaction with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in the field of energy, trade, and investment in the context of growing economic interdependence that elevates Beijing’s relations with the Arab countries of the sub-region to the level of strategic partnership. Thus, China’s relations with this group of states go beyond purely economic interests and affect the strategic interests of Beijing, such as active promotion of the large-scale “Belt and Road Initiative,” which implies the intensification of China’s policy in the Middle East. The methodological basis of the study is an interdisciplinary approach. The authors adhere to the neorealism, particularly the theory of the balance of power and regional security complexes, the principle according to which the foreign policy of a state is heavily dictated by the logic of the international system and the distribution of power among states. The power transit theory allows us to understand better the current role of China becoming a superpower in world politics. The research also applies such methods of historical science as chronological, genetic, systemic-structural, and comparative methods. The collection and processing of a significant layer of statistical data makes it possible to highlight the emergence of new powerful political actors in the Middle East.