Not a Flood, but a Rising Current: Chinese Weapons Sales to the Middle East | INSS
go to header go to content go to footer go to search
INSS logo The Institute for National Security Studies, Strategic, Innovative, Policy-Oriented Research, go to the home page
INSS
Tel Aviv University logo - beyond an external website, opens on a new page
  • Contact
  • עברית
  • Support Us
  • Research
    • Topics
      • Israel and the Global Powers
        • Israel-United States Relations
        • Glazer Israel-China Policy Center
        • Russia
        • Europe
      • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
        • Iran
        • Lebanon and Hezbollah
        • Syria
        • Yemen and the Houthi Movement
        • Iraq and the Iraqi Shiite Militias
      • Conflict to Agreements
        • Israeli-Palestinian Relations
        • Hamas and the Gaza Strip
        • Peace Agreements and Normalization in the Middle East
        • Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States
        • Turkey
        • Egypt
        • Jordan
      • Israel’s National Security Policy
        • Military and Strategic Affairs
        • Societal Resilience and the Israeli Society
        • Jewish-Arab Relations in Israel
        • Climate, Infrastructure and Energy
        • Terrorism and Low Intensity Conflict
      • Cross-Arena Research
        • Data Analytics Center
        • Law and National Security
        • Advanced Technologies and National Security
        • Cognitive Warfare
        • Economics and National Security
    • Projects
      • Preventing the Slide into a One-State Reality
      • Contemporary Antisemitism in the United States
      • Perceptions about Jews and Israel in the Arab-Muslim World and Their Impact on the West
  • Publications
    • -
      • All Publications
      • INSS Insight
      • Policy Papers
      • Special Publication
      • Strategic Assessment
      • Technology Platform
      • Memoranda
      • Posts
      • Books
      • Archive
  • Database
    • Surveys
    • Spotlight
    • Maps
    • Real-Time Tracker
  • Events
  • Team
  • About
    • Vision and Mission
    • History
    • Research Disciplines
    • Board of Directors
    • Fellowship and Prizes
    • Internships
    • Newsletter
  • Media
    • Communications
    • Video gallery
    • Press Releases
  • Podcast
  • Newsletter
New
Search in site
  • Research
    • Topics
    • Israel and the Global Powers
    • Israel-United States Relations
    • Glazer Israel-China Policy Center
    • Russia
    • Europe
    • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
    • Iran
    • Lebanon and Hezbollah
    • Syria
    • Yemen and the Houthi Movement
    • Iraq and the Iraqi Shiite Militias
    • Conflict to Agreements
    • Israeli-Palestinian Relations
    • Hamas and the Gaza Strip
    • Peace Agreements and Normalization in the Middle East
    • Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States
    • Turkey
    • Egypt
    • Jordan
    • Israel’s National Security Policy
    • Military and Strategic Affairs
    • Societal Resilience and the Israeli Society
    • Jewish-Arab Relations in Israel
    • Climate, Infrastructure and Energy
    • Terrorism and Low Intensity Conflict
    • Cross-Arena Research
    • Data Analytics Center
    • Law and National Security
    • Advanced Technologies and National Security
    • Cognitive Warfare
    • Economics and National Security
    • Projects
    • Preventing the Slide into a One-State Reality
    • Contemporary Antisemitism in the United States
    • Perceptions about Jews and Israel in the Arab-Muslim World and Their Impact on the West
  • Publications
    • All Publications
    • INSS Insight
    • Policy Papers
    • Special Publication
    • Strategic Assessment
    • Technology Platform
    • Memoranda
    • Posts
    • Books
    • Archive
  • Database
    • Surveys
    • Spotlight
    • Maps
    • Real-Time Tracker
  • Events
  • Team
  • About
    • Vision and Mission
    • History
    • Research Disciplines
    • Board of Directors
    • Fellowship and Prizes
    • Internships
  • Media
    • Communications
    • Video gallery
    • Press Releases
  • Podcast
  • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • עברית
  • Support Us
bool(false)

Publications

Home Publications Chapters Not a Flood, but a Rising Current: Chinese Weapons Sales to the Middle East

Not a Flood, but a Rising Current: Chinese Weapons Sales to the Middle East

Memorandum No. 194, INSS, August 2019

עברית
Hiddai Segev
Ofek Riemer

China is a superpower growing politically, economically, and militarily, and has an international vision and global map of interests. Along with its political and economic programs, its security and military needs have also grown. Thus, there has been an increase in China’s military budget in recent years, along with groundbreaking steps such as building its first independently produced aircraft carrier and establishing its first military base outside of China.1 In October 2017, at the 19th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared that by 2035 China would have a “modern” army and military sector, and would reach the level of “global superpower” by 2049 – the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the People’s Republic of China.2 As of 2018, China was ranked as the world’s fifth largest arms exporter, although it is a distant fifth behind Russia and the United States. During the years 2014-2018, Chinese arms exports made up some 5.2 percent of total global arms exports, constituting an increase of 2.7 percent over the previous five years.3 Chinese military exports to the Middle East began in the mid-1970s, and peaked in the 1980s. Subsequently in decline, today they are negligible in comparison with arms transfers to the region from the United States, Russia, and Western countries. However, a change seems to be emerging, due to converging trends – the expansion of China’s interests and its deepening economic relations in the Middle East, its military-industrial buildup, and the growing attraction of Chinese-made military technology. Noteworthy, for example, is the export of singular low cost products of sufficient quality such as unmanned attack aircraft, which are offered for sale to countries in the region without the policy restrictions imposed by other superpowers.



For Israel, this apparent trend is a challenge on a number of levels: the potential that advanced weapon systems will fall into the hands of Israel’s enemies, particularly Iran and its proxies; the appearance in the “neighborhood” of weapon systems where the technological familiarity with them is low and therefore it is more difficult to build a response to them; the lack of a commitment on the part of China (unlike the United States) to maintain Israel’s qualitative military edge and the lack of communication channels with it on this issue; and increasing competition by China in the field of military exports, where Israel has enjoyed a relative advantage. All these issues warrant increased attention from Israel’s defense establishment to China’s military industries in general and to the Middle East in particular, the establishment of suitable channels of communication with the Chinese government on the issue, and clarification of the issue in discussions with the US administration.

The opinions expressed in INSS publications are the authors’ alone.
Publication Series Chapters
TopicsIsrael-China Policy Center - The Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation
עברית

Events

All events
The 18th Annual International Conference
25 February, 2025
08:15 - 16:00

Related Publications

All publications
Shutterstock
China’s Global Initiatives: Implications and Recommendations for Israel
Beijing is leading a series of initiatives to advance the Chinese vision for the global order. What are the implications for Israel?
11/06/25
Shutterstock
Clouds of Competition—China’s Rise in the Middle East Cloud Market
China's technological presence in the Middle East is expanding – and its integration into the regional cloud market is just one of many examples. What challenges do these steps pose for Israel?
26/05/25
Shutterstock
Trends in Israel–China Trade in 2024
Against the backdrop of the war in Gaza and the global trade war, how did Israel’s trade with China fare last year — and what are the major challenges on the horizon?
25/05/25

Stay up to date

Registration was successful! Thanks.
  • Research

    • Topics
      • Israel and the Global Powers
      • Israel-United States Relations
      • Glazer Israel-China Policy Center
      • Russia
      • Europe
      • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
      • Iran
      • Lebanon and Hezbollah
      • Syria
      • Yemen and the Houthi Movement
      • Iraq and the Iraqi Shiite Militias
      • Conflict to Agreements
      • Israeli-Palestinian Relations
      • Hamas and the Gaza Strip
      • Peace Agreements and Normalization in the Middle East
      • Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States
      • Turkey
      • Egypt
      • Jordan
      • Israel’s National Security Policy
      • Military and Strategic Affairs
      • Societal Resilience and the Israeli Society
      • Jewish-Arab Relations in Israel
      • Climate, Infrastructure and Energy
      • Terrorism and Low Intensity Conflict
      • Cross-Arena Research
      • Data Analytics Center
      • Law and National Security
      • Advanced Technologies and National Security
      • Cognitive Warfare
      • Economics and National Secutiry
    • Projects
      • Preventing the Slide into a One-State Reality
      • Contemporary Antisemitism in the United States
      • Perceptions about Jews and Israel in the Arab-Muslim World and Their Impact on the West
  • Publications

    • All Publications
    • INSS Insight
    • Policy Papers
    • Special Publication
    • Strategic Assessment
    • Technology Platform
    • Memoranda
    • Database
    • Posts
    • Books
    • Archive
  • About

    • Vision and Mission
    • History
    • Research Disciplines
    • Board of Directors
    • Fellowship and Prizes
    • Internships
    • Support
  • Media

    • Communications
    • Video Gallery
    • Press Release
    • Podcast
  • Home

  • Events

  • Database

  • Team

  • Contact

  • Newsletter

  • עברית

INSS logo The Institute for National Security Studies, Strategic, Innovative, Policy-Oriented Research, go to the home page
40 Haim Levanon St. Tel Aviv, 6997556 Israel | Tel: 03-640-0400 | Fax: 03-744-7590 | Email: info@inss.org.il
Developed by Daat A Realcommerce company.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.