The proposed Ben Gurion Canal (connecting the Israeli port of Eilat to Mediterranean ports) poses a challenge to China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Therefore, China is working to consolidate its influence through the ports it already operates to secure alternative trade routes and faster transit routes. China is leveraging its growing naval power and presence in strategic ports to secure the routes of its “Maritime Silk Road” within its Belt and Road Initiative, aiming to ensure the flow of its trade and protect its economic interests. This represents a strategic hedge against alternative and competing routes like Israel’s Ben Gurion Canal, which could diminish the importance of traditional Chinese routes in the Middle East, most notably Egypt’s Suez Canal.
The Israeli Ben Gurion Canal project is essentially a proposed waterway intended to connect the Red Sea (from the Gulf of Aqaba) to the Mediterranean Sea. China considers it a competitor to its Belt and Road Initiative and the Egyptian Suez Canal, given the nature of the project, its objectives, and its route. The Israeli Ben Gurion Canal project begins in the Israeli city of Eilat on the Gulf of Aqaba, passes through the Arava Valley and the Negev Desert, and reaches the Mediterranean Sea near Ashkelon. The proposed length of the canal is approximately (293 km), longer than the Suez Canal (193 km). However, the Israeli and American plan aims to make it a two-way waterway, meaning it will allow ships to pass in both directions simultaneously and with a greater depth to accommodate the world’s largest tankers. The initial estimated cost of digging the Israeli Ben Gurion Canal and its associated projects is approximately $55 billion, with expectations of completion within five years if work were to commence. However, the Gaza War in October 2023 has thus far prevented Israel from completing its plans.
China has employed various mechanisms to secure its maritime routes and counter Israeli competition, particularly through the proposed Israeli port of Ben Gurion, which rivals China’s Belt and Road Initiative. This initiative, conceived by the US at the 2023 G7 summit in New Delhi, was intended to counter the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative. Consequently, China has focused on developing its infrastructure and ports (the “Maritime Silk Road”). China is investing heavily in strategic ports (such as those in Djibouti, Pakistan, and the Mediterranean) to bolster its maritime presence and protect global trade. Beijing also aims to safeguard its trade routes by strengthening its naval capabilities and military presence, especially in contested areas, to ensure the stability of Chinese and global supply chains.
China has also developed numerous maritime plans through the People’s Liberation Army to hinder and restrict competition from alternative projects to the Belt and Road Initiative. The proposed Israeli Ben Gurion Road (connecting the Israeli port of Eilat to the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean ports) poses a significant challenge to the maritime component of the Chinese Silk Road. Therefore, China is working to consolidate its influence through the ports it already operates to secure alternative trade routes and faster transit times. This is being achieved through a comprehensive Chinese strategy that integrates its trillions of dollars in economic investments with a naval presence and coastal power to secure its routes from Asia across the Indian Ocean to Europe. China is using these strategies to solidify its position as a major global trade hub within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative and to counter any competing projects that threaten its logistical dominance.
China is primarily concerned about Israel’s Ben Gurion Canal project, fearing its competition with China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Israel and its allies (with US support) are using this project to create an alternative to trade routes passing through the Suez Canal, which is currently a pivotal point in China’s “Maritime Silk Road.” Furthermore, the Ben Gurion Canal project has geopolitical potential. This Israeli alternative to the Egyptian Suez Canal and China’s Belt and Road Initiative aims to reduce China’s growing influence in vital waterways and prevent it from unilaterally controlling global supply chains by providing a corridor under Israeli control. More importantly, the Ben Gurion Canal project is linked to current regional conflicts. Israel’s primary objective in controlling the Gaza Strip may be part of securing the route of the Israeli alternative to the “Ben Gurion Canal” or establishing associated logistical facilities (ports) in areas near the Strip.
However, numerous challenges and obstacles hinder the completion of Israel’s Ben Gurion Canal project. The first is economic feasibility, as the extremely high cost of excavating the canal in such difficult, rocky terrain makes price competition with the Suez Canal extremely difficult. Furthermore, Israel lacks security stability, especially given the canal’s location in a region of ongoing conflicts and its proximity to the Gaza Strip and the Jordanian border, posing significant security risks to global trade. This is where Egypt’s position lies: it views the Israeli project, an alternative to the Suez Canal and China’s Belt and Road Initiative, as a direct threat to Egyptian national security and Suez Canal revenues, potentially creating sharp regional tensions.
To counter these Israeli and American ambitions, which also challenge China’s projects, China is utilizing its coastal and naval power to secure its trade routes through a multifaceted strategy. This strategy combines military modernization, a continuous presence, pressure in the “gray zone,” and the development of global infrastructure. China’s maritime strategy, through a comprehensive approach to protecting its growing economic interests in near and far seas, involves the modernization of its navy. China possesses one of the world’s largest navies and coast guard forces. This military modernization aims to deter foreign powers, particularly the United States and its allies, from interfering near its shores and beyond. China also employs “gray zone” tactics, such as in the (South China Sea), where it deploys large coast guard vessels and armed civilian fishing boats to harass and deter foreign vessels and assert its territorial claims without escalating disputes into full-scale war.
China also utilizes legal force to secure its maritime presence. The 2021 Chinese Coast Guard Law explicitly grants the force the authority to use force against foreign vessels in waters claimed by China, providing legal cover for its maritime activities. Furthermore, within the framework of its Maritime Belt and Road Initiative, China is investing heavily in developing ports and maritime infrastructure worldwide, from Greece to Sri Lanka and Djibouti. These ports not only serve commercial purposes but also provide a strategic foothold and logistical support for its growing naval forces.
To this end, the Chinese navy seeks to secure straits, while China aims to reduce its reliance on maritime chokepoints controlled by Western powers, such as the Strait of Malacca, by developing alternative routes, such as the Arctic Ocean route. China also seeks to secure existing waterways through a military presence in areas such as the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.
