Underscored by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s recent visits to Syria, Egypt, and Algeria, Beijing seems to be paying a lot of attention to the Middle East. For the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states, rising tensions between the US and China clearly comes with major geopolitical implications.

Already, the Joe Biden administration has put pressure on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to remove Huawei equipment from its telecommunications network in addition to other measures to distance Abu Dhabi from Beijing. However, other GCC members will probably feel different levels of such heat. Interestingly, Qatar may find itself under less pressure because Washington does not appear overly concerned about the nature of Beijing-Doha relations...