China ramps up COVID-19 diplomacy in Mideast
As the Trump administration tries to link the coronavirus to a Chinese laboratory, Beijing is using the pandemic to strengthen ties in the Gulf.
Having seemingly contained the novel coronavirus within China, Beijing has now switched its focus to aid efforts globally on a fast-track basis — including providing masks, test kits, diagnostic and medical technology, other equipment and training facilities to many countries in the Middle East affected by the pandemic.
Some Middle Eastern countries look to follow what they perceive as successful Chinese strategies in dealing with COVID-19. China has gained a reputation for having dealt relatively effectively with the virus, and thus the popular perception in parts of the Mideast is that China can help end the pandemic quickly.
After having opted for stringent steps such as China's, the leading Gulf Cooperation Council states are looking for quick results that could enable them to reopen their economies as soon as possible.
This comes as tensions over the pandemic escalate between Washington and Beijing, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo saying May 3 that "there is a significant amount of evidence that this came from that laboratory in Wuhan."
