Middle East

Containers are loaded from the railway at the seaport terminal DIT Duisburg Intermodal Terminal at the Duisburg harbour, Germany, on 13 July 2023. With the expansion of rail-bound freight traffic along the "new Silk Road", the port continues to expand its role as a hub or end point of the Silk Road, which connects China and numerous other Asian countries with the Port of Duisburg. (Ina Fassbender/AFP)

Can the US-backed ‘modern spice route’ challenge China’s new Silk Road?

While the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor launched at the recent G20 summit has been touted as a game changer, challenges lie in the way of implementing the plan while China’s ten-year-old BRI continues to be entrenched in global infrastructure networks. EAI senior research fellow Yu Hong shares his views.
People crossing the street in front of the Paramount Global headquarters in Times Square, New York City, 8 August 2023. (Michael M. Santiago/AFP)

The global south and global north: Where does Singapore belong?

Former journalist Goh Choon Kang notes the gap between the global north and global south, with more affluent countries not delivering on promises and commitments made to less developed countries. Is there hope of reconciling the strong and the weak?
Chinese trucks parked at Gwadar port. These trucks were part of the trade convoy that carried the first export consignment from Kashgar to Gwadar for onward shipment on 13 November 2016. (Khurram Husain/Dawn)

Why Baloch separatists in Pakistan want China's BRI out

With more attacks on Chinese nationals threatened by Baloch separatists in Pakistan, Beijing has pressured Islamabad to take foolproof security measures to protect its nationals and interests in the South Asian country. Columnist Syed Fazl-e-Haider explains.
Chinese President Xi Jinping looks on at the China-Africa Leaders' Roundtable Dialogue on the last day of the BRICS Summit, in Johannesburg, South Africa, 24 August 2023. (Alet Pretorius/Pool/Reuters)

BRICS expansion a sign of shifting global governance and security architecture

The world's map of global governance and security architecture is shifting, and BRICS is heeding the call for change, says academic Alessandro Arduino. Countries like Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, who have just been invited to join BRICS, seek to diversify their strategic options. This is in line with China's outreach to the global south and Russia’s need to combat international isolation, but the other BRICS members may have some hesitation.
From left: Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, China's President Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov raise their arms as they pose for a group photograph, at the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa on 23 August 2023. (Alet Pretorius/Pool/AFP)

BRICS expansion ups ante but can the momentum be sustained?

It would be a mistake to think that the soon-to-be 11-member BRICS would unite to become a formidable coordinating force at the international level, says Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong.
This handout image provided by the UAE Ministry Of Presidential Affairs shows UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (R) standing by as Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signs the guest book during an official reception at Qasr al-Watan in Abu Dhabi on 17 July 2023. (Hamad Al-Kaabi/UAE's Ministry of Presidential Affairs/AFP)

Japan's diplomatic strategy in Asia: Maintaining uniqueness despite growing security concerns

While Japan wants to be "unique" in its diplomacy, these days it seems that it is less flexible than it used to be as global attention shifts to security. Will Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's recent visit to the Middle East restore some confidence?
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (centre) attends the UAE-Japan Business Forum in Abu Dhabi on 17 July 2023. (Karim Sahib/AFP)

Asserting Japan's interests in the Middle East

Japanese academic Masaaki Yatsuzuka notes that Japan's Middle East diplomatic initiatives pit it against China, which is also attempting to increase its influence among the Arab nations. How will developments pan out, and what does the future hold for Japan-Middle East relations?
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan (left) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 17 July 2023. (Saudi Press Agency/Handout via Reuters)

Ankara’s drone diplomacy in the Gulf complicates China’s regional calculations

When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan headed to the Gulf last week seeking investments, he had a formidable bargaining chip — drone diplomacy. The top-of-the-line Turkish combat UAV, the Akinci, is much sought-after in Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia. China may be worried, as this development could threaten its leading position in the field and hinder its economic and diplomatic offensive in the Middle East.
Fighters of Wagner private mercenary group are seen atop a tank while being deployed near the headquarters of the Southern Military District in the city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia, 24 June 2023. (Stringer/File Photo/Reuters)

China struggles to comprehend Wagner mutiny in Russia

Even as unanswered questions remain about the revolt led by the Wagner Group’s Yevgeny Prigozhin, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s foreign friends such as China may be worried about Putin’s status and the unclear future of Wagner Group, particularly in the Middle East and Africa, where Chinese businesses and private military companies also operate.