Where Are China-Gulf Relations Headed in 2024?

Over the past year, a series of developments in China-Gulf relations have signaled deepening ties. After Saudi Arabia rolled out the red carpet in December 2022 for Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend multiple Middle East-focused summits, Beijing helped broker an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran to normalize relations. Multiple Gulf states have deepened their engagement with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS grouping. Both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates possess multibillion-dollar currency swap agreements with China, while Qatar has signed multiple 27-year liquid natural gas agreements with China. Following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict, a ministerial delegation from the Middle East traveled to Beijing as part of a global push to pressure Israel to adopt an immediate cease-fire. 

Where are relations headed in 2024? Has the November 2023 meeting between U.S. President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Xi in San Francisco had any impact on the trajectory of Chinese influence in the Gulf? What is the relationship between economic conditions in China and economic ties with Gulf states? Do ambitious development plans in Gulf states and major global events present viable commercial opportunities for Chinese business actors? Does technology-related cooperation involve more promise or peril, given the sensitivities in this strategic sector? How can we make sense of the hierarchy of Chinese interests in the Gulf? 

The views represented herein are the author's or speaker's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of AGSI, its staff, or its board of directors.