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China Wants to Be a Big Player in the Middle East

by Eric Olander

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s latest six-nation tour of the Middle East and Turkey revealed that Beijing now aims to play a much larger role in the region.

During his trip, Wang signed a high-profile strategic cooperation agreement with Iran, announced a major vaccine production deal with the United Arab Emirates, and brought China’s message on Xinjiang to Saudi Arabia, home of Islam’s two holiest sites in Mecca and Medina.

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