Arabs seek coherent Chinese strategy

Dubai: China's meteoric rise as a global economic power is a recurrent theme at business forums these days everywhere, and the Gulf region is no exception.

Having been busy for decades in building relations with the West, Arab countries lack strategies in dealing with new world realities in which the US alone no longer holds sway over global trends, analysts say.

They point out the "Bric countries," or Brazil, Russia, India and China, have also become new global arbiters.

Prakash Shah, India's former permanent representative at the United Nations, said China as the world's number two energy consumer wants close links with the Middle East, but Arabs need to develop a "coherent strategy" in dealing with the new giant.

"Arabs have much greater familiarity with India due to historical relations. But those in charge in Arab countries are beginning to realise that a coherent strategy is needed in dealing with China not only on energy but also in overall economic relations," Shah told Gulf News.

Saudi moves

Saudi Arabia already talks about China in strategic terms and has concluded several energy deals. It has been the top supplier of crude to the US and rarely bothered in the past to search for new consumers.

Participating in a recent Middle East-China conference held in Dubai, Saudi Arabian mining company Ma'aden's chief executive officer Abdullah Al Dabbagh enumerated several benefits of close Saudi-Chinese relations. "Saudi Arabia can offer oil-intensive goods and China can offer labour-intensive goods," he said.

He said his country sits on 22 per cent of the world's proven oil reserves and Saudi Arabia was crucial for any country's energy needs.

However, Shah believes China is not going to replace the US as the top buyer of Saudi oil.

"There is a US-Saudi understanding on oil prices and supplies," he added.

Frederic Sicre, executive director of Abraaj Capital, says energy producers in the region are looking for alternatives to America's "unchallenged hegemony in the region," and China is an option. "Relations with the US were the prime focus area for many decades, but a failed political agenda in the region and the emergence of new growth centres are opportunities for the GCC to leverage," he told Gulf News. "Bric nations are emerging as new forces both politically and economically and what holds true for the world, holds true for the GCC."

Kito de Boer, managing director of McKinsey & Company in the Middle East, believes Arabs are already behind others for the China "deal flow."

He urged more partnerships with those already doing business with China, like Malaysian investment arm Khazanah and Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

And the Chinese, he said, should look beyond oil as the Gulf region "has its own strategic imperatives."