East Asian Politico-Economic Ties with the Middle East

About the Book

While American foreign policy debates dominate headlines about the Middle East, a quieter but consequential story is unfolding across the Pacific. China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong have each been building their own distinct relationships with the region — through trade deals, diplomatic maneuvering, infrastructure investment, and cultural exchange — and this book by Shirzad Azad is one of the few to examine all of these players together in a single, accessible study.

Azad organizes the book country by country, digging into how each East Asian actor approaches specific Middle Eastern partners. China's chapter looks at how the One Belt, One Road initiative intersects with Gulf states' Vision 2030 plans, why Iran remains Beijing's most strategically important partner in the region, and how China has tried to stay neutral in conflicts like Syria. Japan gets credit for a more hands-on diplomatic style that mixes economic and security goals, while South Korea's "second boom" strategy targets Gulf markets, Iran, and Iraq for trade and construction contracts. Even North Korea gets serious treatment here, showing how Pyongyang has pursued pragmatic economic ties with Iran and Gulf states since the death of Kim Il-sung. Perhaps the most surprising chapters cover Taiwan and Hong Kong, whose under-the-radar connections with Middle Eastern governments and markets turn out to be far more substantial than most observers realize.

For readers trying to understand global energy politics, China's rise, or Middle East geopolitics beyond the American lens, this is a genuinely useful and well-researched overview.