Do three recent high-level meetings mean that Beijing wants to fill a vacuum? No — there is no vacuum, despite a comment by U.S. President Joe Biden. The goal of Arab people in seeking friendly relations with China is not security but development.

China is becoming more engaged in the Middle East, but there are limits to the depth of this engagement. While trade links have deepened and investments have increased, energy resources remain the centrepiece of Chinese involvement and any official stance on the plethora of complex political issues are strongly eschewed.