Patterns of China's political economy in West Asia; A case study of Saudi Arabia (1991-2023)

Document Type : Research

Authors

1 P.h.d candidate of Political Science, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Allameh Tabatabai University, Tehran, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of International Relations, University of Law and Political Sciences, Allameh Tabatabai University

Abstract

The economic policies of the People's Republic of China, under the influence of deep structural changes in the international political economy and the rapid expansion of the capitalist system, have witnessed important changes in the direction of being more compatible with the international system. In this regard, excess capital and the need to export it, the concentration of industrial production, the need to access the consumption market, and energy resources in the Chinese economy have caused a change in the government's economic agenda in creating a development approach and stabilizing power in the international political economy structures. This research tries to address the fundamental question of what changes have China's economic goals and policies towards the Middle East region, especially Saudi Arabia, undergone after the end of the Cold War and extensive changes in the structure of the international political economy, and what model or principles and foundations has it followed? In response to this important question, the hypothesis is raised that China's economic policy, unlike the approach of other extra-regional actors in the Middle East, which usually follows the model of alliance and coalition, is designed based on the model of cooperative strategy. This research explains the issue with a qualitative method, relying on the political economy approach and using primary and secondary sources, including documents, reports, lectures, articles, and authentic websites. The findings of the research confirm the fact that the cooperative strategy model has provided the advantage of flexibility based on mutual benefit to cover a wide range of issues, and within that framework, tension-causing issues have been marginalized from the text, and investment in the form of relations based on economic security between China and the countries of the region has expanded rapidly, as a result of which China's contracts and partnerships in the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia, such as comprehensive strategic partnership, road belt initiative, 1+2+3 cooperation model and so on. 

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References

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International Political Economy Studies
Volume 8, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
September 2025
Pages 27-48

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History

  • Receive Date: 16 August 2024
  • Revise Date: 09 October 2024
  • Accept Date: 03 December 2024

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