WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (UPI) -- China is boosting its influence with Middle East nations, especially Egypt, to rival that of the United States, a British source said.
Beijing is seeking to boost its sources "of raw materials, foreign markets for manufacturers, overseas investment opportunities and, in the longer term, political influence" in the region, the British-based newsletter Jane's Islamic Affairs Analyst said in a statement Monday.
"China has recently been strengthening relations with Egypt, setting a trade target of $5 billion by 2009, set to rival even the current level of U.S.-Egyptian trade," the newsletter said.
"Egypt, with its estimated 15 billion barrels of oil and 1.9 trillion (cubic meters) of gas reserves, views China as an increasingly powerful global economic actor and an important trade and investment power to re-balance its relations with the world's major powers<" the statement said.
Jane's Islamic Affairs Analyst said the Chinese-Egyptian relationship had benefited from "strained relations between Cairo and Washington over diverging viewpoints on Iraq and the Middle East peace process, some of the same issues on which the Egyptian and Chinese positions are closely aligned."
"Beijing is seemingly exploiting this deterioration of U.S.-Egyptian political relations," the newsletter said.
"China's appeal is not only its low-interest loans and injection of investment capital for industrial projects, but the fact that it has no record of colonization or military intervention in Africa and is willing to engage in commerce without attaching any political or human rights conditions," it said.
"China's relationships with developing countries such as Egypt will likely be a significant feature of the global geopolitical and economic landscape in years to come," the newsletter said.
