In the last decade, the approach of engagement between China and the United States has turned into competition. In the era of competition and the gap between the two powers, many governments have taken steps to reorganize their foreign policies. Meanwhile, the traditional role of Saudi Arabia as the security arm and energy supplier for the West is changing due to the US “pivot to Asia” policy, the economic rise of China, and the intensification of Sino-US competition. This article aims to explain Saudi Arabia's strategy in the face of competition between China and the United States, and to answer the question in an analytical-explanatory Method, How has Saudi Arabia provided the basis for cooperation with China and the United States in a situation of uncertainty, competition, and gap between Two Powers, and what impact will this approach have on Iran's national interests? in response, it is assumed that Saudi Arabia, realizing the change in capabilities and the new arrangement of the components of the international order, has readjusted its foreign policy based on the Hedging Strategy in order to use from the benefits of relations with China and the United States, providing the possibility of reducing the management of political and economic risks with these two powerful actors and regional powers, including Iran.
Theoretical Framework: This article uses the Hedging Strategy. This theory is rooted in the realist theory of international relations and accepts the main principles of realist theory, such as anarchy, no formal central authority, uncertainty and seeks to reduce foreign policy risk in a realist world. The Hedging Strategy is used by middle-power states in a decentralized unipolar system, in which the hegemon’s ability to impose power is declining. The adoption of such a strategy by smaller states is described as a kind of soft balance, involving interaction in bilateral relations and strengthening economic and political interactions with two rival regional powers. This strategy emphasizes engagement and integration mechanisms on the one hand and balancing on the other. A state that adopts this strategy cooperates with a strong and emerging state to prevent threats and vulnerabilities. The Middle and smaller government's Hedging strategy manifests itself in three forms: weak cooperation, moderate cooperation, and strong cooperation. Saudi Arabia has attempted to regulate its foreign relations with the United States and China at these three levels.
Discussion: Within the framework of the Hedging Strategy, Saudi Arabia's foreign policy has been adjusted in such a way that the country is less harmed by the gap and competition between great powers. Cooperation in three dimensions; weak, moderate and strong cooperation has been evident in various areas between China and the United States. Saudi Arabia adopted this strategy because it faces several strategic dilemmas in the future as the US hegemonic role in the West Asian region declines; on the one hand, Saudi Arabia considers the alliance with the US vital for its defense and regional stability, but it is concerned about the future of US security commitments to West Asian countries. On the other hand, China has been Saudi Arabia’s number one trading partner in the past decade, which Saudi Arabia considers important for its economic prosperity.
The United States remains a reliable ally and a strong partner in the security-military field; according to Saudi Arabia, there is currently no alternative to the United States in West Asia from a military perspective, and the United States has strong security and arms deals with Saudi Arabia. In fact, the strong security-military ties of the past indicate that the security relations between Saudi Arabia and the United States will continue, and in the context of new arms deals, the issue of civilian nuclear knowledge transfer and the space cooperation agreement has become apparent. Despite Saudi Arabia’s strong military cooperation with the United States, Riyadh has sought to increase its military and economic power and play a more active regional role by strengthening regional and international alliances. In parallel with strong military cooperation with the United States, Saudi Arabia’s weak and moderate cooperation with China is progressing at the political-security level, and moderate cooperation in the energy sector has been strengthened; Saudi Arabia’s cooperation with the United States in the energy sector has been reduced to a moderate and weak level, while cooperation with China has been maintained at a moderate level and is likely to enter the level of strong cooperation. The weakening of the dollar through the Petroyuan and direct investment and financing have also been cited as other examples of moderate cooperation between Saudi Arabia and China. Saudi Arabia’s hedging strategy with China and the United States has a transitory effect on Iran’s regional policies. By avoiding a dual geopolitical strategy, Saudi Arabia advances its strategic interests by pursuing good relations with China and the United States in order to ensure its future political and security stability and reduce the risk of damage from a confrontational policy with Iran. Saudi Arabia’s coherent plan, in the form of an approach of hedging with the two great powers, increases its economic and military capabilities in the region and avoids direct confrontation with them, thereby managing the economic supply chain and security order of the region. Saudi Arabia also seeks to manage its relations with Iran by expanding its relations with China. It improves its position in China’s foreign policy through diversification of energy and investment policies and moderates the challenges of its relations with Iran through China.
Conclusion: Saudi Arabia has adopted a Hedging Strategy in its foreign policy to regulate its foreign policy with China and the United States, thereby using from the benefits of bilateral relations and, by compromising between cooperative and antagonistic mechanisms and observing the principle of the middle ground, covering its possible risks and vulnerabilities to the two great powers. Saudi Arabia’s Hedging strategy toward the US and China is to maximize the political and economic returns from cooperation with both sides and reduce long-term risks to economic and political security without severing coherent and beneficial relations with these two actors and other global and regional actors. In addition to regulating Saudi Arabia’s relations with China and the US, Hedging also affects relations with other actors and regulates relations with other actors within that framework. Security-military cooperation with the United States will remain strong and at this level, but at the economic level (energy), cooperation has gone from strong to moderate and weak. This situation allows Saudi Arabia to use economic opportunities (China) while using sustainable and vital security partnerships (US). Saudi Arabia, along with the role of the United States, is paying attention to China's active role in the form of economic interaction, active diplomacy, and a greater role in resolving regional conflicts, and through this, it influences the development of Iran's political, security, and economic relations with China in the region.