Monday, February 9, 2015

China's Persian Gulf Diplomacy

The Centre for Chinese Studies at Stellenbosch University published in December 2014 a study titled "Navigating the Gulf: China's Balancing Strategy" by Mandira Bagwandeen, analyst for the Asia Pacific Region at Salamanca Group in South Africa. 

The author argues that China has sought to improve relations with Persian Gulf nations such as Iran because the region contains a large share of the world's proven oil reserves.  Iran's pursuit of nuclear capabilities has complicated China's diplomacy.