China-US-Europe rivalry in the Mediterranean

Abstract

Speaker: Emilie Tran, Hong Kong Metropolitan University Discussant: Thomas Demmelhuber, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg China’s presence in the Mediterranean has led to increased competition between China, on the one hand, and the former colonial power (France) and the liberal West (represented by the EU and the US) on the other hand. Western powers and China aim to attract the Northern African countries into their respective sphere of influence. This paper explores the stakes of this on-going rivalry — including economic, technological and regime competition — through the case-study of mega investment and infrastructure projects initiated by the US and China in the Mediterranean. France and the EU have proposed tools to the southern Mediterranean countries in various fields, including the 1 billion euros to be invested in Tunisia’s economy announced in June 2023. Meanwhile, Chinese state-owned ICT firms — China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom —, are mapping out what is set to be the world’s most advanced and far-reaching subsea cable network. This new fiber-optic network linking Asia, Africa, and Europe, aka the Europe-Middle East-Asia (EMA) cable project, will ultimately create a Chinese system that rivals the US-backed, in-progress optical fiber submarine communications cable system that links Southeast Asia, the Middle East and West Europe, aka SeaMeWe-6. These two cable projects are expected to improve Internet connectivity for millions of people around the world, especially in Africa. Chinese telecom companies have already signed a partnership agreement with Telecom Egypt to land the cable in Egypt. Digital technologies and infrastructure are major tools in the U.S.-China battle for world dominance, and it is now unfolding in the Mediterranean.