Washington, D.C. — The political environment in the Middle East continues to be increasingly turbulent and shifting rapidly, with ramifications throughout the globe. The United States and China have the opportunity to take steps to promote peace and stability in the region if they work together.
In the last year, experts from the Center for American Progress, the China-United States Exchange Foundation, and the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies teamed up to generate new ideas and hold a series of exchanges to assess ways the two powers can work together. The culmination of that partnership is a major report, released today, that takes a comprehensive look at the issues and challenges facing the Middle East and makes recommendations for collaboration that will improve stability in one of the world’s most problematic regions.
“There is no arguing that China-U.S. cooperation can be constructive and helpful to the region,” said Rudy deLeon, CAP Senior Fellow and an editor of the report. “In cooperation, they may hold the ability to promote the kind of lasting change in the Middle East that brings the peace and economic security that has eluded us for decades. The recommendations in this paper are a starting point in that cooperation—one that we are sure both powers can agree is integral to a successful strategy in the region.”
The organizations offer recommendations to tackle some of the most difficult issues facing the region. These include ways to build sustainable security and prosperity in Egypt, the Middle East’s most populous country; the generational challenge of countering violent extremism and reducing the threat of terrorist groups; connecting the Middle East with the rest of the global economy through the New Silk Road initiative; and securing the flow of energy resources from the Middle East to the rest of the world.
The groups will discuss their findings this morning at an event hosted by CAP featuring representatives from all three organizations.
Click here to read the paper.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.