Arab countries and China are partners in growth
The Eighth Ministerial Meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF) will be held in Beijing on July 10. It will be attended by Emir Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah of Kuwait, representatives from the other 21 Arab countries, and the Secretary General of the Arab League. Chinese President Xi Jinping will address the opening ceremony. This meeting will be another important event in China-Arab relations following President Xi’s participation in the sixth CASCF Ministerial Meeting in 2014 and his visits to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Arab League headquarters in 2016. At the meeting, China and Arab states are expected to have discussions on how to jointly advance the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and strengthen overall cooperation with a view to drawing up a blueprint for China-Arab relations in the new era.
China and Arab countries share a long history. The past 2,000 years have enjoyed exchanges between the Chinese and Arab peoples through land and sea links, which facilitated mutual learning between two great civilisations. Since the mid-20th century, we have supported each other in our respective struggles for national independence and development, writing a new chapter of friendship and cooperation. The inception of the CASCF in 2004 has further advanced China-Arab relations.
As President Xi aptly puts it, China and Arab countries, who are natural partners in Belt and Road cooperation, need to follow the Silk Road spirit of peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit, and seek greater synergy in our pursuits of national renewal. The visionary guidance and commitment of our leaders have lent a fresh impetus to relations.
Over the past four years, we have maintained frequent high-level exchanges, including President Xi’s successful visits to the Middle East and the visits to China by the heads of state of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Palestine. Such exchanges have contributed to deepening political trust. China has established its strategic relations with 11 Arab countries. It has supported Arab countries in exploring their own paths of development, and Palestine in restoring the lawful rights of its people. Arab countries, on their part, have given China valuable support on issues concerning its core and major interests.
The scope of our result-oriented business cooperation and people-to-people exchanges has evolved to cover a wide range of areas, including satellite launch and cotton production. The CASCF institution building has made significant progress. Notably, our pursuit of greater complementarity between development strategies has resulted in new progress in China-Arab cooperation. China has signed Belt and Road cooperation MoUs with nine Arab states and production capacity cooperation agreements with five Arab states. Both the Silk Road Fund and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have invested in Arab countries. In 2017, China-Arab trade approached $200 billion, up by 11.9 per cent year-on-year, and direct Chinese investment in Arab countries reached $1.26 billion, an increase of 9.3 per cent.
Over the past four years, we have added new dimensions to our cooperation in the traditional areas of energy, infrastructure and trade. The Hassyan clean coal power plant in Dubai, equipped with the world’s leading ultra-supercritical technology, and the Attarat power plant in Jordan have taken China-Arab power cooperation to a new level. Several large infrastructure projects are well underway, including Phase II of the Khalifa Port in the UAE and the train project in the 10th of Ramadan City in Egypt. These projects are expected to develop Arab countries further and ensure better connectivity.
Our cooperation has continued to evolve and deepen through innovation. We have inaugurated a Technology Transfer Center, and held a successful Beidou Cooperation Forum. China has helped Algeria put its first communications satellite into orbit, setting an example for such cooperation between China and Arab states.
China has plans to provide assistance to Palestine and humanitarian assistance to Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Libya and Yemen, as was announced by President Xi. It has trained over 6,000 people of different professions for Arab countries. While encouraging competitive production capacity to go global, China has helped Arab countries build capacity for homegrown development
The Hassyan clean coal power plant in Dubai, and the Attarat power plant in Jordan have taken China-Arab power cooperation to a new level
in light of their need for economic diversification. Arab countries, for their part, have facilitated visits of Chinese nationals to the region. Today, nine Arab countries give visa-free or visa-upon-landing treatment to Chinese nationals, and 150 passenger flights and 45 cargo flights are run between China and Arab countries every week. As a result, the number of Chinese tourist arrivals in the region is soaring year on year. On the other hand, Arabian specialities of premium quality, including cotton from Egypt, olive oil from Tunisia, chocolate from Lebanon and dates from the Gulf countries, have entered Chinese households with the help of e-commerce.
At the forthcoming Eighth Ministerial Meeting, China and Arab countries will follow the guidance of our leaders, explore ways to advance futureoriented cooperation centered around the BRI, and further upgrade ChinaArab relations. China and Arab countries will become partners in promoting peace and stability. We need to strengthen coordination, continue to support each other on issues of major interests and core concerns, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries.
Wang Yi is State Councilor and Foreign Minister of
the People ‘s Republic of China