Published April 23rd, 2006 by Future Atlas
The Chinese and the Saudis
The NYT reports on the growing relationship between China and Saudi Arabia.
This relationship is one aspect of a transformative trend: the growing role of China in the world as an alternative to established economic and political powers.
Some salient points from the article:
- “‘Saudi leaders are moving from benign neglect of China to considering it as a long-term partner,’ said Samuel Blatteis, a Fulbright fellow who has studied the growing ties between China and the Persian Gulf.”
- China takes a no-strings-attached attitude, as it is unconcerned with matters such as democracy or reform.
- Trade between the two countries has been growing at 41% a year since 1999.
- “The recent outcry from Congress and the American public over the possibility of having ports controlled by a company in Dubai sent a loud message to the Arab world, convincing many businessmen that their fortunes now lie in the East,” analysts say.
The latter point illuminates the deep foolishness of the anti-Dubai reaction from the standpoint of long-term American interests.
(It is worth keeping in mind that China’s wealth is still quite moderate: its economy is still smaller than Germany’s at exchange rates, the measure that matters in assessing global economic power. But that caveat will grow less important with each passing year, as China’s economy grows.)