The Doraleh Disputes

“Barton uses the Doraleh disputes to provide a timely and compelling study of power and third wave South-South Cooperation (SSC). In the process he offers a novel analysis of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – not an easy task – as well as nuanced descriptions of the push and pull factors that influenced policy-makers in Djibouti, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and China.”

--Jonathan Fulton, Assistant Professor, Zayed University, UAE


“A most thorough and methodical study of a fascinating case: the Doraleh Disputes. It discusses two expressions of SSC: China’s New Silk Roads strategy and the UAE’s strategy. It then examines the trialogue between Djibouti, DP World and China Merchants – one state and two multinationals – which leads to the question of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) as proxies for power. Thus, the issue of developing countries’ agency is also at stake. Thrilling and challenging!”

--Thierry Pairault, Emeritus Professor, EHESS, France

​This book focuses on underexploited data drawn from various legal disputes over the Doraleh Container Terminal in order to paint a portrait of SSC when it comes to infrastructure financing and construction in Africa as provided both by the UAE and China. By producing a detailed account of the drivers behind these disputes as well as the broader political outcomes they have generated, this study provides invaluable conceptual and empirical lessons on the contemporary meaning of SSC. In doing so, it helps readers garner a more acute understanding of the role played by Global South states and the private sector (SOEs) against the backdrop of SSC.
Benjamin Barton is the author of Political Trust and the Politics of Security Engagement: China and the European Union in Africa (2017) and co-editor of China and the European Union in Africa: Partners or Competitors? (2011). His research interests centre around economic statecraft and local agency attached to the BRI. Barton is Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham Malaysia, where he convenes modules on Chinese foreign policy and on the geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific.