KHARTOUM, July 9 (Xinhua) -- The eighth ministerial meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF), slated for Tuesday in Beijing, will strengthen the progressive ties between China and Arab States, Sudanese analysts said Monday.
"Since its establishment in 2004, the CASCF acquires a great importance, and the ministerial meeting will further strengthen the relations between the Arab world and China," said Khalid Dirar, a professor of political sciences at al-Rasid Center for Strategic Studies in Khartoum.
"The CASCF has constituted a great leap in the China-Arab ties and contributed to putting the historical relations between the two sides within an institutional framework with potentiality for continuation and development," he said.
He explained that, thanks to the CASCF, the size of the trade exchange between China and the Arab countries jumped from 36.4 billion U.S. Dollars in 2004 to 191 billion dollars in 2017.
Dirar further pointed out that China is now considered the second biggest trade partner for the Arab countries, noting that "the two sides maintain strong will to press ahead with increasing trade exchange."
Meanwhile, Abdul-Raziq Ziyada, a Sudanese political analyst, stressed the importance of the China-Arab cooperation within the context of the Belt and Road Initiative.
The initiative, proposed by China in 2013, refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, which aim at building a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road.
He added that the Arab states need to implement the Belt and Road Initiative in order to release their potential energies and benefit from the huge investments provided by the initiative.
"China adopts principles such as respect of sovereignty and non-intervention in the internal affairs of countries. China also maintains primary stances towards the Palestinian cause. All these constitute factors of attraction that help in enhancing the bonds between China and the Arab states," said Ziyada.
The CASCF meeting on Tuesday will conduct comprehensive and in-depth discussions on areas, such as consolidating the traditional friendship between China and Arab countries, and advancing the Belt and Road Initiative.
