The impact of the emerging Chinese economic power on the relations between the United States of America and the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council countries: a case study of the Belt and Road Initiative 2013-2023

The study aimed to reveal the impact of the emerging economic power on relations between the United States and the countries of the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council, in the light of the Belt and Road trade initiative. The study reached several conclusions, the most prominent of which was the great importance of the Arab Gulf countries represented by the strategic geographical location that mediates the Middle East, which in turn works to link the three Asian, African and European continents to each other by land and sea, in addition to the importance of possessing energy represented by oil and natural gas, and that This importance formed one of the most important determinants of US and Chinese foreign policy towards the region. On the other hand, the study showed that the control of the United States over the South China Sea led to the limitation of China's commercial capabilities and its expansion in its maritime trade routes, which led the Chinese side to establish the (Belt and Road) initiative, relying on international partnerships, the most important of which is the partnership with the Arab Gulf countries that It possesses one of the most important geographical locations, in addition to possessing energy resources, which in turn will activate the Chinese economy, increase the effectiveness of trade, and achieve benefits for both China and the Arab Gulf countries. As a result, the study presented several scenarios, the most important of which was building inter-trade relations between China and the Arab Gulf states, which would lead to a reduction in the American presence and control in the Arab Gulf region, and achieve benefits for both the Chinese and Gulf sides, and thus the United States’ endeavor to achieve a balance between it and the Arab Gulf states. China and its attempt to present economic initiatives that are more beneficial to the Arab Gulf countries as an attempt to compete with China in this region, which will lead to the emergence of a new world order based on economic bipolarity between the United States and China, and that the Gulf countries are the focus of competition between the two sides.