Author Description

Russia and China are often mischaracterized as allies. Authors Jonathan Fulton and Li-Chen Sim explore the perception that their revisionist preferences for international order align, and that their desires for a less US-centered international order mean they are collaborating toward this end. In the report, the authors agree that Russia's more prominent security role in MENA augments China's larger economic footprint; and that together they function as wedge strategies vis-à-vis US relations with traditional interlocutors in the region. There is, however, little evidence that China and Russia proactively coordinate their approaches in MENA. Fulton and Sim provide a comparative analysis of the approaches that China and Russia have adopted to develop their regional presence in MENA across four realms of influence: political, economic, security, and public diplomacy.