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Jeffrey Payne is Research Fellow/Academic Affairs Manager at the National Defense University’s Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies (NESA) in Washington, DC. He joined the NESA Center in 2012, after serving for five years as an Instructor of Political Science at Butler University. While at Butler, he taught classes on Asian politics, social movements, international relations, and political economy. Mr. Payne has also served as a consultant for the World Bank and as a faculty member for DePauw University. As a Research Fellow at the NESA Center, Mr. Payne conducts analysis on Chinese foreign policy, South Asian security affairs, maritime security, and transnational movements. In his role as Academic Affairs Manager, Mr. Payne serves the Dean of the NESA Center by managing academic products produced by the NESA Center. Presently, he serves as the NESA Center’s lead for engagements in the People’s Republic of China. He also serves as the director of the Next Generation Seminar, an ongoing NESA program devoted to the rising generation of leaders in the Middle East and the impact of the Arab Awakening. Additional NESA programs in which he is a part include Energizing Peace, a program devoted to energy security in the Levant, and the Strategic Studies Network. Mr. Payne received his Master’s Degree from Indiana University. Originally hailing from the Midwest, he has lived in China and traveled extensively throughout Asia. He and his wife live in the Northern Virginia.
The G.C.C. and China’s One Belt, One Road: Risk or Opportunity?
China’s One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative does not provide an equal opportunity for all states, and, in the case of the Gulf, it is Iran that will likely benefit over all others. The states of the G.C.C. also factor into Beijing’s plan, just not to the same degree―and that is the problem. Yet, as this essay shows, using OBOR and existing comparative advantages will allow the states of the G.C.C. to balance Iran’s potential windfall.
Iran offers a unique platform for China’s ambitions in the Middle East, and as such Beijing is willing to bet that the benefits of closer ties with Tehran will outnumber the costs. This analysis examines the calculations China is making regarding its relationship with Iran and argues that deepening bilateral ties reveal the centrality of Iran for China’s Middle East strategy.
