China seeks greater cooperation with Arab Nations

On June 5, 2014, the Chinese government hosted the 6^th Ministerial Conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF) at the great hall of the people in Beijing. With the theme “building modern Silk Road and promoting China-Arab common development, the Conference brought together delegates from Arab states and the Arab league with their Chinese counterparts to discuss further cooperation in economic, political, cultural and educational fields. More than 200 delegates were in attendance including foreign ministers and representatives of China and the League of Arab states (LAS). Africa was well represented by Sudan, Somalia, Djibouti, Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia.

President Xi Jinping graced the opening ceremony of the ministerial conference and delivered an important speech stressing the promotion of the Silk Road spirit to deepen the china-Arab cooperation. The Silk Road is a series of trade and cultural transmission routes that connected regions of the Asian continent from China through the Mediterranean Sea by linking traders, merchants, pilgrims, monks, nomads and urban dwellers during various periods in historical times. Trade on the Silk Road was a significant factor in the development of the civilizations of China, the Indian subcontinent, Persia, Europe, and Arabia, opening long-distance, political and economic interactions between the civilizations. During the coming of age of Islam, Arab traders became very prominent.

In his speech, president Xi Jinping said that through the ancient Silk Road, the ancestors of the Chinese and Arab peoples took the lead in the friendly exchanges among nations in the ancient world. It is in this historical context that he hoped the two sides will promote the Silk Road spirit and take the joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road of the 21st Century for the benefit of the Chinese and Arab people. The Silk Road proudly bears the spirit of peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning, mutual benefits and win –win results.

China and the Arab states enjoy mutual understanding and friendship because of the Silk Road, and are natural cooperative partners in jointly building the "One Belt One Road". The two sides should hold a broader vision and down-to-earth attitude to establish a "1+2+3" cooperation pattern, namely, to take energy cooperation as the core, infrastructure construction, trade and investment facilitation as two things and three;  high and new tech fields of nuclear energy, space satellite and new energy as new breakthroughs.

Foreign Minister Abdurrahman Beileh of Somalia met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and discussed the current situation in Somalia. He expressed that Somalia is now facing very big challenges and hoped to carry out cooperation with China in the fields of road network, port construction and agriculture.

China is the old friend and traditional trade partner of Somalia. The famous Chinese navigator Zheng He passed the costal shores of Somalia to the Kenyan coast of Malindi where he decked. A constantly developing Somalia is good for the Silk Road maritime trade. Wang Yi expressed that the Chinese side will firmly support the peaceful and social development of Somalia and will reopen the Chinese Embassy in Somalia as soon as possible. He further stated that China stands ready to continue to strengthen security cooperation, provide assistance to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and send the convoy fleet to safeguard the maritime security in relevant waters.

The conference achieved major positive outcomes and consensus was achieved on all the major directions, priority fields, specific measures and implementation road map in strengthening China-Arab cooperation. Both sides signed three important documents including the "Beijing Declaration", the "Action Plan for 2014 to 2016" and the "Development Plan for 2014 to 2024", proposing cooperation ideas, cooperation measures and cooperation routes on how to achieve mutual benefits and win-win results between China and the Arab states. Among the documents, the "Development Plan" puts forward the overall objective and advancement direction for the development of the China-Arab relations and determines 15 key cooperation fields such as economy and trade, energy, culture, industry, agriculture, science and technology, health care, education, press and publication, infrastructure, aerospace, environmental protection and non-governmental exchanges.

The "Action Plan" stipulates that in the following two years, both sides will continue well organizing the seven major institutional activities such as the China-Arab Business Conference and Investment Seminar, China-Arab Energy Cooperation Conference, Seminar on China-Arab Inter-civilization Dialogue, China-Arab Friendship Conference, China-Arab Press Cooperation Forum, and China-Arab Senior Health Officials' Meeting. It also determines that in the following two years, both sides will focus on eight major cooperation intents such as establishing China-Arab senior officials' strategic dialogues, promoting the construction of the free trade area between China and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, establishing China-Arab Technical Training Center of Desertification Prevention and Control, and implementing China-Arab Scientific and Technological Partnership Program.

The 6^th Ministerial Conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF) was a great success as both sides have become closer and more focused as Arab states are “turning east” while China is seeking greater cooperation for mutual development through the modern Silk Road.