China’s Security Protection of Chinese Nationals in the Middle East

Abstract Strengthening the security protection of overseas Chinese is an important means for China to safeguard its overseas interests. The Middle East is in turmoil with frequent security incidents involving Chinese nationals and their assets. Ensuring the safety of Chinese natioanls is an important part of promoting the sound development of China and the Middle East relations. Drawing on the questionnaire survey, this paper examines the security threats and risks faced by Chinese nationals in some Middle Eastern states, and seeks to explore how China might enhance its security protection capability accordingly for Chinese nationals in the Middle East. It shows that the Chinese government has taken a series of measures to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese nationals, by strengthening the top-level design and mechanism coordination, improving the consular protection system and overseas evacuation capabilities, and participating in security governance and non-traditional security cooperation in the Middle East.