My column for AGBI, J10s for Egypt?, Missile fuel for Iran?, Wang Yi meets Gideon Saar in Munich, Chinese smartphones in MENA, renewable energy lab in Morocco

Gulf-China relations are strictly business - AGBI. This is my first of what I think will be a monthly column for AGBI. As a business-focused publication, they want more economics than politics, so expect trade, investment and tech-centered topics. I’m open to suggestions. For this first one I wanted to emphasize the need to think about China’s role in the Gulf with an accurate understanding of how the region features in China’s bigger picture. The intro:

Hardly a day goes by without a story about China’s growing presence in the Gulf, which is a remarkable transition. When I started working on a PhD focusing on China-GCC relations in 2011, an economist at a regional sovereign wealth fund dismissed the project out of hand: “How are you going to write 100,000 words on selling cheap stuff and buying oil”?

Nearly 15 years later the narrative has shifted hard in the other direction, with China generally considered a major external power in the region. That does not mean its role in the Gulf is any better understood.

Chinese J-10CE Jets Arrive in Egypt, Marking Shift in Air Superiority Strategy - Egypt Daily News. I really don’t know what to make of this story. As far as I can tell, this is the first newspaper to report this sale (in English, at least) - a lot of the story has been driven by one source, and credible analysts that I’ve been corresponding with have been suspicious or dismissive of it. I addressed the rumours about the sale in a piece I published last month for Atlantic Council: