China’s Soft Power in the Middle East

Abstract

China in 2013 had announced the commencement of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and this grand project has steadily become one of the largest infrastructure development initiatives globally. Through its grand BRI plans, China aims to strengthen itself economically and reshape the international balance of power. For this, China is utilizing the broader idea of soft power which implies to all elements outside the security realm, including tools of investment and aid. In fact, this soft power tactic is serving as an effective instrument for China to vigorously engage with various Middle Eastern nations. China, through the BRI’s China-Central Asia-West Asia Corridor, is developing various infrastructure and construction projects in and around the partner nations of this region. And for this China appears to be pursuing a multidimensional strategy that incorporates soft power complementing its broader military modernization and force projection efforts to secure its energy requirements. It should be noted that one of the significant pre-requisites for the utilization of soft power requires expanding economic ties, which eventually leads to the deepening of soft power relationships. However, the volatile bilateral and multilateral relations including various other politico-strategic issues have so far impeded the progress of the BRI in this region. In this context, this paper will try to comprehend two major questions while analysing China’s soft power promotion in the Middle Eastern region. Firstly, by analysing China’s BRI plans and identifying the targets of China’s soft power endeavours in the Middle East, what is the message that Beijing is trying to project globally as well as in the volatile Middle Eastern region? Secondly, it must be assessed if China’s soft power endeavours have achieved anything in terms of changing the China’s perception in the region. The paper will discuss the basic definitions of soft power provided by various international thinkers and philosophers in order to understand the Chinese understanding of such an approach. It will also try to assess whether China’s use of the BRI is not an immediate, tangible, or causal connection rather a mere linkage formed by the BRI which allows the Chinese influence to spread in Middle East. The paper will also briefly assess whether China’s soft power initiatives as part of its BRI plans are linked to countering the American influence and presence in this region and how their progress has been thus far in accordance with Beijing’s initial objectives.