Eleventh Global Studies Conference

Abstract

This paper explores China’s contemporary energy initiative with the Islamic republic of Iran, which is one of the largest energy reserves regions. Iran is one of the five natural gas producers and top ten oil producers in the world, it has an asset of a third of OPEC natural gas reserves. China has initiated the up-stream and down-stream joint ventures with Iran, banks and backed-loans policies and its companies of national oil are mounting the capacity of energy that will flow from Iran. China’s financial potency, zero military installation, and lack of political involvement in the region gives China a unique balance from its open access to the Iran energy resources. Critically, it is evidenced that the political implications of China’s energy gaining strategy, the potential for conflict, cooperation with the USA, and the probability of the re-positioning of major powers in Iran will give China a unique vantage point in the future. It’s an epicenter for US-China rivalry too.