FOR a considerably long period, the tension between Iran and Middle-East provided a free ground for countries from outside the region like Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, United Kingdom and the United States to guard maritime activities in the Persian Gulf especially in and around the Strait of Hormuz with their own rules. The major threat to regional waters had been Iranian vessels and a US-led 34 countries Combined Maritime Forces Coalition was formed to mitigate this threat along with threats from international pirates.
The historic rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia brokered by China gave the old Western ways an unexpected shock when the Iranian Embassy in Riyadh reopened after seven years. As events are unfolding dramatically and quickly, Iran proposed a Naval Alliance of regional partners. China has welcomed this initiative expressing Chinese support for Middle Eastern regional countries in resolving disputes and cultivating good neighbourliness and friendship through dialogue and consultation. Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry added that “China will continue to play a positive and constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability.” The offer of Iran for a naval alliance of regional partners is a timely move but it is too early to say anything about its reality. It can be a good move as India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and UAE being the partner of this alliance can keep the regional waters clean from conflicts, and can safeguard regional stability which suits all the stakeholders of the region.
This could be an interesting development in the region, considering the past in mind where the US as a key player was ensuring the region’s security, mainly from Iran and China but now the so-called threats to the region themselves forming alliances to secure the region and its maritime activities that of course squeezing the space for the US who was busy in hardcore warfare in the Middle East and Afghanistan, which resulted in millions of deaths and unprecedented economic loss to the region. Distrust and chaos as an obvious byproduct could have engulfed the region into further torment, but China intervened and started breaking peace deals within the region. The Chinese philosophy does not require military hegemony but rather believes in win-win cooperation.
The Strait of Hormuz and Malacca Strait are two choking points where conflicting situations can break the chain of international trade. China launched the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and its flagship project China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) because Beijing has long understood that the Strait of Hormuz and Malacca Strait are two major US targets to block Chinese trade. The new economic paradigm requires regional connectivity that triggers the need for regional peace and cooperation and this idea of self-reliance for regional security makes the US practically irrelevant in this region. The US-led Combined Maritime Forces Task Force, headquartered at the US naval base in Bahrain, works on security, counterterrorism and counter-piracy in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf areas but some regional countries consider the task force as a US and Israeli move to forge a regional coalition to contain Iran and China including an air defense network.
The second decade of the 21st century is an era of multilateral relationships and bloc politics is bygone days because wars in the Middle East, Afghanistan and now adventurism in Ukraine are lessons to learn for all times to come. The idea of regional well-being is strongly emerging in the Gulf region and in the Middle East. Top priorities now are boosting economic growth and keeping a stable energy supply in the emerging world. Experts believe that the decision of the UAE having one of the strongest naval appearances in the region to leave the US-led naval task force indicates that the Gulf is looking forward to a more cohesive resolution but regional security needs Iran’s extra responsible conduct and this writer believes China’s high stakes will keep eyes on Iranian responses to regional issues.
The regional diplomatic mathematics is pretty simple. China being the largest oil importer and the Strait of Hormuz, being the biggest route for oil import and export, does not want the region to have conflicts, so China wants stability and a “no-more wars please” option while Americans usually offer the readymade option of “adventurism” deeply rooted into “Kissingerism” that can no more serve today’s realities. Gulf and the Middle East having deep-rooted relations with NATO countries but do not want to engage in adventurism and move forward by taking advantage of the Chinese economic model the best option to move ahead that is opting for the concept of asymmetrical multi-polarity and that is what this region has decided to follow.
—The writer is a Prague-based author, columnist and foreign affairs expert who writes for national and international media.
Email: [email protected]
