As can be seen in the video that accompanies this news item, China is taking advantage of its new peacekeeping role in the war in Ukraine to consolidate and expand its new Silk Road.
The economic project promoted by Beijing to promote the creation of large commercial connections focuses, in particular, on maritime trade.
Days before Chinese President Xi Jinping flew to Moscow on March 20 to discuss the Ukraine war with Russian President Vladimir Putin, an agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia put China in a position of trade advantage. in that area of the globe.
The pact aims to restore diplomatic, trade and security relations between the Arab powers, in an effort to ease tensions in the Middle East after seven years of rivalry.
But Saudi Arabia's strategic position and developing economy make China a vital partner for investment in the region's maritime infrastructure, from which the country can benefit.
On the other hand, relations with Iran provide China with access to important port facilities, such as the port of
Bandar Abbas
, located at the junction of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
As explained in the report, maritime trade moves 90% of the merchandise that is transported in the world.
Its management is the key to controlling the main supply chains: the large consumer markets of Europe and North America, the production of manufactured goods in East Asia, and the supply of raw materials from Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Oceania.
Through its million-dollar investments, China has built the world's largest port network, with 89 terminals in 44 countries.
In 2022, the country bought one of the terminals in the port of Hamburg, in Germany, of which it already controls 27%.
It was also the eighth largest port investment in Europe by Cosco, the Chinese state-owned company.
As explained in the video by the principal investigator of the Elcano Royal Institute and tenured professor at the Center for East Asian Studies of the Autonomous University of Madrid, Mario Esteban, the presence of Chinese capital in Europe has revealed tensions between the bloc and the Asian giant, in recent years.
"Originally the European Union was not reluctant to this type of investment, what happens is that the relationship with China has become politicized in recent years and that is why there is more sensitivity to receiving Chinese investment in strategic sectors," Esteban emphasizes.
