For several years now, despite the war in Ukraine, all relevant US agencies have declared China as the No. 1 threat, that is, enemy, to the United States, and of course the CIA does the same in every annual report. Russia has “receded” to second place.
China, in recent decades, has shown astonishing growth! Gently but steadily and persistently, it is conquering international markets. On the other hand, the “US empire” is going through a period of its most serious decline. Not only on an economic or political level, but also on a cultural one. And this latter is what constitutes the backbone of every empire. The American way of life has collapsed under the weight of an almost paranoid social failure.
More or less, everyone today believes that Israel is in charge of the US. And it is constantly dragging it into an unreasonable support for local wars and war crimes. Maybe it is true. Perhaps the motivation for supporting the state of Israel is the corruption and scandals of American politicians.
At The Liberal Globe, we are not sure. It may also be the opinion of Hassan Nasrallah, the Lebanese Secretary General of the Lebanese political and paramilitary party Hezbollah, who was recently assassinated by the Israelis. He stated that: “do not make the mistake of thinking that America is doing Israel’s bidding; it is Israel that is carrying out the secret plans of the United States.”
This may be true, we cannot rule it out. Israel, despite global propaganda, is a small and essentially state, but a huge (the largest) and largely self-sufficient US base in the Middle East.
This explains a lot. It explains the endless billions that America sends to Israel and that all Presidents send without fail, regardless of party. It explains the historically unfounded statements: “Israel is the greatest ally of the US”. It explains the American support at the logistical level but also at the level of secret services and intelligence in every conflict that Israel provokes. It also explains the ridicule of President Trump, who was elected with the slogan, an end to the continuous wars and from those statements, he ended up shouting that he would “annihilate Iran”.
China, for its part, is clearly hoping to become the next empire. Through the BRICS, it influences and controls about 40% of the world’s economy and is clearly aiming for the next goal, that of 70%.
China, in its own plans, is expanding through trade, economic investment, cultural influence and technological flourishing. It is much less involved – if at all – in military operations. This makes it more difficult for it to be drawn into military conflicts. However, its adversaries are not sitting idly by and are literally attacking Chinese infrastructure.
Let’s look at this approach in more detail and in relation to the modern “Silk Road”, officially known as the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative (Belt and Road Initiative – BRI), which is China’s largest investment project worldwide and includes a vast network of land and sea routes connecting Asia with Europe and Africa.
A brief presentation of the BRI:
1. Silk Road Economic Belt
- Xi’an (China): Central train hub to Europe.
- Khorgos (Kazakhstan): The world’s largest “dry gate” with Chinese capital.
- Duisburg (Germany): The main terminal in Europe.
- Tehran (Iran): A hub where railways from China meet routes to Turkey and Europe.
2. Persian Gulf & Iran (Strategic Link)
China has signed a 25-year cooperation agreement with Iran, investing billions in its infrastructure. The agreement foresees a total investment of 400 billion dollars.
- Energy: 280 billion dollars for oil and gas development.
- Infrastructure: $120 billion for ports, railways and telecommunications (5G).
- In return: China receives guaranteed oil and gas at preferential prices (up to 30% discounts).
Although the exact amounts per project are often shrouded in secrecy due to US sanctions, estimates include:
- Bandar Abbas (Shahid Rajaee Port) Amount: Around $1.5 – 2 billion for the first phase of upgrading. Goal: Transform it into a world-class container hub. It is the port directly connected by rail to Turkey and Russia.
- Chabahar (Shahid Beheshti Port) Amount: Planned investment of over $500 million in infrastructure. Objective: Although Iran initially had an agreement with India, China has entered the game to connect it with Pakistan (Gwadar) and Afghanistan.
- Jask (New Terminal) Amount: Part of a $2 billion package for the region. Strategy: Located outside the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf of Oman. Allows oil exports even if the straits are closed in a military conflict.
- Kish Island and Qeshm (Free Zones) Investment: Development of tourism and commercial infrastructure, with rumors of their use as logistics bases (or even military facilities in the future).
- Rail Connections Amount
- Tehran – Isfahan: $2.7 billion investment for high-speed rail.
- Mashhad – Tehran: Electrification of the line with Chinese financing of 1.5 billion dollars.
Why is it important for China?
Bypassing Sanctions: Use of the Chinese currency (Yuan) for transactions.
Security: Iran is the only country that can offer a safe land route to Europe that is not controlled by the US or its allies.
- In Bandar Abbas, China is investing in its modernization to function as the southern gateway of the “North-South Corridor”.
- In Chabahar, China has included the port and the nearby industrial zone in its plans for connection with Afghanistan and Central Asia.
- In Jebel Ali (UAE) Chinese investment is made in giant logistics centers (Traders Market) and in Khalifa Port (UAE) a COSCO-owned terminal was built.
3. Red Sea & Africa
- Djibouti: Multifunctional port (Doraleh) and China’s only overseas military base.
- Port Said & Sokhna (Egypt): Chinese TEDA economic zone on the Suez Canal.
- Jeddah (Saudi Arabia): COSCO investment in the Red Sea Gateway terminal.
4. Indian Ocean & Mediterranean Sea
- Gwadar (Pakistan): Port under full Chinese management (CPEC exit).
- Hambadota (Sri Lanka): Port controlled by China for 99 years.
- Piraeus (Greece): COSCO’s main port in the Mediterranean and gateway to Europe.
5. Arctic Silk Road
- Yamal (Russia): Huge investments in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and use of the Northern Sea Route to Europe.
Conclusion
China is investing in Iran to bypass its dependence on the Strait of Malacca and have direct access to the markets of the Middle East and Europe by land.
It is therefore obvious, even to the naked eye, that the American and Israeli attack on Iran is hurting China and its plans. Iran provoked it by accepting Chinese investments and is now subject to the consequences.
The rapid decline of the USA and the serious economic problems of approximately 40 trillion deficits have removed the pretenses and the once “protector of civilians and democracies” does not calculate anything to stop China.
At this stage, there may be some opinions that claim that the US is not in financial danger and some other such nonsense of the canals, but we all know that for many decades we have been living in a globalized economy, an economy of communicating containers and no one is left unscathed.
Our predictions, unfortunately, are not favorable. If the war does not stop and a “normality” does not return to maritime transport, we believe that by the end of July we will face a global economic recession and by the end of August a global economic hardship.
This would be literally fatal for countries that are unable to maintain an adequate supply of basic goods.
China’s reaction will be fierce and will be forced into military operations. It will also completely abolish the dollar from transactions, both it and the countries cooperating with it.
There is another aspect of this adventure that pushes us to make ominous predictions. The end of the war, based on current data, will leave Iran de facto the greatest power in the region. This would constitute a real – this time – danger to the existence of Israel, which very dangerously multiplies the possibility of using its nuclear weapons (for more analysis on this subject, please read the article titled “Will Netanyahu proceed to a Νuclear Ηolocaust to win the War?“).
But the possibility of using nuclear weapons by the USA is not small either. We believe that it is extremely naive to believe that an immoral and fundamentally wounded empire will not use its weapons in a desperate attempt to save itself from economic disaster. The USA, however, has not accustomed us to such sensitivities. This country has always bombed the entire planet and is the only one to have used nuclear weapons in the past.
This view is also based on the fact that, today, there is no longer any treaty limiting nuclear weapons at the international level. We are moving in this direction without even some elementary precautions.
