China in the Mashriq: New Best Friend

... disagreement over the reconstruction of the Haifa port, China’s participation in the construction causing U.S. warnings. In the opinion of U.S. officials, increased Chinese investment in Israel is a serious threat to the latter’s national security. * * * China’s influence in the Middle East is still mainly limited to issues of trade and economy, currently pursued within the overarching framework of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). However, China is also harboring some foreign policy ambitions. This has become especially noticeable with China’s active stance in establishing relations ...