Mehran Haghirian is a PhD Candidate at Qatar University and Director of Regional Initiatives at the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation.Luciano Zaccara is a Research Associate Professor in the Gulf Studies Center at Qatar University.

• 1 Introduction Luciano Zaccara and Mehran Haghirian 2 China in the Middle East and North Africa: An Empirical Inquiry on China’s Expansion towards the West Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou and Hamed Vafaei 3 The Sino-Iranian Relationship: A Role Theory Approach to a Non-Western Great Power-Middle Power Partnership Jacopo Scita 4 Iran’s ‘Eastward Turn’ in a Turning World: Reassessing Sanctions as a Driver of China-Iran Trade Esfandyar Batmanghelidj 5 China’s Foreign Policy in the Middle East and the Position of the Gulf States Vorachai Israsena Pichitkanjanakul 6 Strategic Transformations of China’s Relations with GCC States: From a Unidimensional relationship to a Multilayered Partnership Ümit Alperen 7 The Emerging Security Role of Turkey and China in the Middle East: Avoiding a Possible Clash in the Future Ali Bakir 8 China and Russia in Post-War Syria: Cooperation or Competition? Lukács Krajcsír 9 The Israel Factor in the Dynamic Relations between China and the Islamic World Zhiqun Zhu 10 China-Bangladesh and China-Pakistan Security Cooperation in the Context of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ and its Implications to the Contemporary Indian Ocean Geopolitics Noor Mohammad Sarker 11 China’s Changing Posture towards Afghanistan: An Insight from Neo Classical Realism Sehar Sabir

Mehran Haghirian is a PhD Candidate at Qatar University and Director of Regional Initiatives at the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation.Luciano Zaccara is a Research Associate Professor in the Gulf Studies Center at Qatar University.

• 1 Introduction Luciano Zaccara and Mehran Haghirian 2 China in the Middle East and North Africa: An Empirical Inquiry on China’s Expansion towards the West Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou and Hamed Vafaei 3 The Sino-Iranian Relationship: A Role Theory Approach to a Non-Western Great Power-Middle Power Partnership Jacopo Scita 4 Iran’s ‘Eastward Turn’ in a Turning World: Reassessing Sanctions as a Driver of China-Iran Trade Esfandyar Batmanghelidj 5 China’s Foreign Policy in the Middle East and the Position of the Gulf States Vorachai Israsena Pichitkanjanakul 6 Strategic Transformations of China’s Relations with GCC States: From a Unidimensional relationship to a Multilayered Partnership Ümit Alperen 7 The Emerging Security Role of Turkey and China in the Middle East: Avoiding a Possible Clash in the Future Ali Bakir 8 China and Russia in Post-War Syria: Cooperation or Competition? Lukács Krajcsír 9 The Israel Factor in the Dynamic Relations between China and the Islamic World Zhiqun Zhu 10 China-Bangladesh and China-Pakistan Security Cooperation in the Context of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ and its Implications to the Contemporary Indian Ocean Geopolitics Noor Mohammad Sarker 11 China’s Changing Posture towards Afghanistan: An Insight from Neo Classical Realism Sehar Sabir

Mehran Haghirian is a PhD Candidate at Qatar University and Director of Regional Initiatives at the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation.Luciano Zaccara is a Research Associate Professor in the Gulf Studies Center at Qatar University.

• 1 Introduction Luciano Zaccara and Mehran Haghirian 2 China in the Middle East and North Africa: An Empirical Inquiry on China’s Expansion towards the West Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou and Hamed Vafaei 3 The Sino-Iranian Relationship: A Role Theory Approach to a Non-Western Great Power-Middle Power Partnership Jacopo Scita 4 Iran’s ‘Eastward Turn’ in a Turning World: Reassessing Sanctions as a Driver of China-Iran Trade Esfandyar Batmanghelidj 5 China’s Foreign Policy in the Middle East and the Position of the Gulf States Vorachai Israsena Pichitkanjanakul 6 Strategic Transformations of China’s Relations with GCC States: From a Unidimensional relationship to a Multilayered Partnership Ümit Alperen 7 The Emerging Security Role of Turkey and China in the Middle East: Avoiding a Possible Clash in the Future Ali Bakir 8 China and Russia in Post-War Syria: Cooperation or Competition? Lukács Krajcsír 9 The Israel Factor in the Dynamic Relations between China and the Islamic World Zhiqun Zhu 10 China-Bangladesh and China-Pakistan Security Cooperation in the Context of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ and its Implications to the Contemporary Indian Ocean Geopolitics Noor Mohammad Sarker 11 China’s Changing Posture towards Afghanistan: An Insight from Neo Classical Realism Sehar Sabir