China praised over Saudi-Iran deal role
Beijing’s cool head, pragmatism enabled historic patch-up between Riyadh and Teheran, experts say
Alow profile in mediation, great pragmatism and having no self-interests are some of the key factors behind Beijing’s successful facilitation of the landmark reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran last week, observers said.
The detente between longstanding rivals of the Middle East highlights Beijing’s critical and constructive global leadership role in promoting world peace, showcasing the Asian giant’s deep sense of responsibility as a major power, they said.
The pact last week between Riyadh and Teheran to restore ties is proof that China is seen as a “trusted and honest broker” on the global diplomatic stage, the experts added.
After severing ties in 2016 and a standoff lasting seven years, Saudi Arabia and Iran sent high-level delegations to Beijing for five days of talks this month, with the discussions starting on March 6 and mediated by China.
The talks were “in response to the initiative of President Xi Jinping of China’s support for developing good neighborly relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran”, China’s Foreign Ministry said.
Following the talks, China, Saudi Arabia and Iran reached an agreement and issued a joint statement on March 10 stating that Saudi Arabia and Iran had agreed to resume diplomatic relations and reopen their embassies and missions within two months.
That helped bring an end a sevenyear rift sparked by Riyadh’s execution of prominent Shia Muslim cleric Nimr al-Nimr in January 2016.
“The fact that (Saudi Arabia and Iran) have accepted China as their trusted broker shows that both sides believe in China’s capacity and genuine intentions to help reduce the temperature in the (Middle East) region,” said Ebrahim Hashem, former adviser to the chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office and former head of the strategy division of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.
By going to Beijing and officially mentioning that it is the “noble initiative” of Chinese President Xi Jinping, officials from Riyadh and Teheran have given “credit to China”, and the way the agreement was announced shows that both sides “believe in China’s positive contribution to regional and global stability”, said Hashem, who is a visiting scholar at the Asia Global Institute of the University of Hong Kong.
Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, held separate dialogues with the two delegations and chaired the talks’ opening and closing ceremonies.
No matter how complicated the issues are and how acute the challenges are, “a mutually acceptable solution can surely be found” as long as dialogue on an equal footing is conducted in a spirit of mutual respect, Wang told reporters after the talks.
“China has no intention to and will not seek to fill so-called vacuums or put up exclusive blocs. China always believes that the future of the Middle
East should always be in the hands of the countries in the region,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a written response to the media on March 11.
“The agreement that has been brokered and announced from Beijing sends a clear message to the world that the Middle East is not the exclusive sphere of influence of anybody and that the regional players have the agency and ability to hold their fate in their own hands,” said Hashem, the visiting scholar at the Asia Global Institute.
In a statement on March 10, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his appreciation to China “for hosting these recent talks and for promoting dialogue between the two countries”, saying that “good neighborly relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia are essential for the stability of the Gulf region”.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on the same day, “What fantastic news today in a world where we are unfortunately no longer used to receiving good news.”
The agreement shows the leadership role that China is taking on the international stage, “a leadership role that is focused on uniting rather than dividing” and “forming winwin cooperation and encouraging dispute resolution”, he added.
China “acting as an honest broker and pragmatically offering incentives to both countries” has been critical for realization of the detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran, said Farhan Mujahid Chak, associate professor of political science at Qatar University.
On March 7, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang answered a question about the Middle East at a news conference on the sidelines of the two sessions in Beijing without mentioning the talks. He said that China “will continue to uphold justice” and support Middle Eastern countries in promoting political solutions to hotspot issues.
Li Shaoxian, director of Ningxia University’s China-Arab Research Institute, said behind China’s successful final push in the reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran
are “trust (of) both countries, Beijing’s patience, Chinese diplomatic wisdom and a great sense of duty”.
“China honored its role as a responsible major country by showing the courage to undertake such a demanding task. This is a successful example of putting into practice the China-proposed Global Security Initiative and jointly building a community with a shared future for mankind,” he said.
Wu Sike, China’s former special envoy on Middle East affairs, said the resumption of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, two major players in the Middle East, will help facilitate the resolution of hotspot issues in the region, including those in Yemen and Syria as well as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
He said that while China’s philosophy advocates common and sustained security, there is another kind of outlook that seeks one country’s own security at the expense of others.
“The world sees clearly which security outlook is better” in having positive impact on global security issues, Wu told the Beijing Daily newspaper.
The sanctions that the United States has imposed on Iran for over 40 years have not really solved any problems and have not brought peace to the Middle East, experts said.
John Kirby, a coordinator for strategic communications at the US National Security Council, said at a briefing on March 10 that Washington welcomes the Saudi-Iran agreement “if it can be sustained”.
Niu Xinchun, director of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations’ Institute of Middle East Studies, said that despite Washington’s great influence on Middle East affairs, it is common for the US to pull the strings behind turmoil, directly intervene in conflicts, attach political conditions to areas such as negotiations, and seek to gain benefits from the countries involved.
“This makes the US unable to stand in an objective, neutral position to mediate conflicts and relations, and even has a negative impact on resolving regional conflicts,” Niu said.
Deniz Istikbal, an economic researcher at the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, a think tank in Ankara, Turkiye, said that as a country that has invested over $200 billion in Western Asia, China takes a stand for the stability of the region.
“It draws attention to bilateral relations and cooperation. Compared to other actors, China is an actor that strives for the stabilization of the region,” said Istikbal.
“Mehran Kamrava, a professor of government at Georgetown University Qatar, and head of the Iranian Studies Unit at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, said the news from Beijing was a “major diplomatic breakthrough” on several fronts as it significantly reduces tensions in the Persian Gulf and helps stabilize the region.
“This is also likely to have positive consequences for Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria, where Iran and Saudi Arabia have employed different means to compete for influence and power,” he added.
Seyed Mostafa Khoshcheshm, former professor at the Faculty of International Relations of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, noted that since Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi took office in August 2021, the country’s “main agenda since day one” has been improving its foreign trade, and that this could only be done through a de-escalation of tensions with regional rival Saudi Arabia.
“(During) his recent visit to Beijing, President Raisi asked his Chinese counterpart to take a more assertive stance and mediate between the two sides,” Khoshcheshm said.
In February, Raisi visited China and met with Xi and concluded that his trip was “successful and fruitful”.
Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan, executive director at The Center for South Asia & International Studies in Islamabad, said China’s deepening presence in the Middle East is a “winwin” for all.
“Hopefully, it would further consolidate President Xi Jinping’s Global Security Initiative’s position, scope, importance and utility in the region,” he said.