Emerging Sino-Saudi Ties: Energy & Security Implications for U.S. Foreign Policy by Sienna G.

Sienna G.'s senior project, "Emerging Sino-Saudi Ties: Energy & Security Implications for U.S. Foreign Policy," delves into the intricate dynamics between China, Saudi Arabia, and the United States through the lens of the Thucydides Trap. She sought to locate an area where the risk of war between the United States and China could be mitigated and, through her research, identified Saudi relations as an opportunity to extrapolate on mutual interests in oil trade to secure Saudi Arabia from its security threats and stabilize the broader region. 

Through a series of six foreign policy maps (two of them in Mandarin and Arabic) that she created, as well as a detailed policy paper, Sienna explores the potential consequences of the evolving relationship between China and Saudi Arabia on U.S. foreign policy. She highlights the historical context of power shifts in international relations, drawing parallels from ancient history to contemporary geopolitics, emphasizing the inherent structural stress that arises when a rising power challenges an established one.

Sienna's project analyzes China, the United States, and Saudi Arabia's drivers of relations, government structure, and foreign policy objectives, as well as areas of tension and cooperation within each bilateral relationship. She demonstrates the deep interdependencies existing in the Middle East, where the U.S. historically provides security guarantees while China engages in extensive trade relationships. Sienna emphasizes the significance of cooperation amidst the looming specter of conflict between the U.S. and China, advocating for a nuanced approach to foreign policy that prioritizes collaboration over competition, asserting, “Saudi Arabia is the only place we can actually pursue cooperation because Saudi Arabia is the one place where we have mutual interests, or at least clear ones.” 

The project culminated with a foreign policy strategy and 16 policy ideas to address China's encroachment on U.S. interest in the Middle East from the perspective of a Sino-Saudi security analyst advising the State Department. Her work underscores the complexity of international relations and the imperative of strategic diplomacy in navigating potential conflicts and also lays the groundwork for her future aspirations as a U.S.-Sino-Saudi security analyst.