Chinese Interests and Policies in the Middle East: A Conversation with Jon Alterman

This episode examines China’s increasing engagement with countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Our guest, Dr. Jon Alterman, evaluates the main drivers of China’s growing involvement in the region, including its crude oil imports and investment in ports and infrastructure. Dr. Alterman also explains China’s non-interference policy in the region’s disputes, and why China’s relationship with MENA countries has not suffered since China’s mass detention of Uighur populations in Xinjiang. Dr. Jon Alterman is a senior vice president, holds the Zbigniew Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy, and is director of the Middle East Program at CSIS. He previously served as a member of the Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State and as a special assistant to the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs. In addition to his policy work, he often teaches Middle Eastern studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and the George Washington University.