China is steadily reducing its dependence on African oil suppliers who once accounted for a third of Chinese crude imports. Today, China buys more oil from Saudia Arabia than any other country in the world. From 2019 to 2020, Chinese oil buys from the Kingdom surged 47%. The Chinese are also buying more oil from Iraq and leveraging its close ties with the United Arab Emirates to establish sophisticated trading logistics hubs in Dubai as part of the Belt and Road Initiative.And China's presence in the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, and North Africa isn't confined to just the commercial realm. Beijing is also rapidly expanding its diplomatic and security engagement in those regions. Now, some are beginning to wonder if China has hegemonic ambitions that will challenge incumbent powers like the United States.Afshin Molavi doesn't think so, at least not now. Molavi closely follows Middle East North Africa (MENA) politics as a senior fellow at the Johns Hopkins SAIS Foreign Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., and regularly travels to the region to meet with senior stakeholders. He joins Eric & Cobus to discuss his new paper, Enter The Dragon: China’s Growing Influence In The Middle East And North Africa and explains policymakers need a more refined view of China's ambitions in MENA. JOIN THE DISCUSSION:Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProjectTwitter: @eolander | @stadenesque | @AfshinMolaviSUBSCRIBE TO THE CAP'S DAILY EMAIL NEWSLETTER:Your subscription supports independent journalism. Subscribers get the following:1. A daily email newsletter of the top China-Africa news.2. Access to the China-Africa Experts Network3. Unlimited access to the CAP's exclusive analysis content on chinaafricaproject.comSubscribe today: www.chinaafricaproject.com/subscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.