A new report by Responsible Statecraft outlines the reason behind the EU’s inability to broker a Saudi-Iran deal allowing China to become a significant player in the Middle East.
It was China and not the European Union (EU) that facilitated the Iran-Saudi agreement to restore diplomatic relations. Responsible Statecraft, in a new piece, begged the question as to why the EU did not have a leading role in this new political breakthrough, noting that the new Middle East agreement “exposed the limits of the European Union’s influence.”
Primarily, it is worth noting that China is considered, according to the EU’s “Strategic Outlook” Joint Communication of 12 March 2019, a “partner for cooperation and negotiation, an economic competitor, and a systemic rival.”
As such, Brussels was “careful to avoid explicitly crediting China” according to the report, but did nonetheless declare readiness to engage “with all actors in the Middle East in a gradual and inclusive approach, in full transparency.”
While some might have argued that the decline in the EU’s Middle East role came as a result of its increased engagement in the war in Ukraine, it remained, Responsible Statecraft explained, that the EU’s declining influence in the Middle East precedes the conflict and was at least partially a result of the bloc’s reluctance to use the leverage it formerly had in that region.
Source: Almayadeen