In July, a Chinese embassy spokesperson expressed confidence that Beijing was ready to play a positive role in promoting peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, in the hope that rapprochement between the Iran and Saudi Arabia would trigger a “reconciliation wave” across the Middle East.
The previous month, Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to Beijing and invited Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu to visit him.
China’s role in the détente between Iran and Saudi Arabia has attracted much attention, with some calling it a defining moment, demonstrating that as the United States’ star waned in the region, that of China was rising.
Then, on October 7, the armed group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing at least 1,400 people and kidnapping more than 200. Israel responded with relentless bombardment of the blockaded Gaza Strip and recently launched ground attacks in the coastal strip, which is controlled by Hamas.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 9,770 Palestinians have been killed so far.
US President Joe Biden quickly condemned the Hamas attack while his administration later ordered two carrier strike groups to the eastern Mediterranean and prepared the deployment of 2,000 troops to deter any other actors from expanding the war in the region.
Biden also visited Israel as a show of solidarity. A meeting was planned between Biden and several Arab leaders, but it was canceled following an explosion at Al Ahli hospital in Gaza, in which hundreds of people were killed.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron also visited Israel, while Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa visited Israel and Jordan.
At the same time, Egypt and Qatar reportedly played key roles in negotiations over the release of Hamas prisoners.
China’s engagement, however, has been very different.
Beijing sent its envoy to the Middle East, Zhai Jun, but neither Xi nor his foreign minister, Wang Yi, have visited the region since the fighting began.
Xi called for a ceasefire while Wang said the source of the conflict “lies in the fact that justice has not been served to the Palestinian people” and that “collective punishment” of Palestinians must end.
Such statements follow basic Chinese strategy when conflict breaks out between Israelis and Palestinians, according to William Figueroa, an assistant professor at the University of Groningen who has conducted research on China’s relations with Middle Eastern countries.
“They first take a very cautious stance, then call for peace and condemn violence against civilians while focusing mainly on Palestinian grievances,” he told Al Jazeera.
Yao-Yuan Yeh is professor of international studies focusing on Taiwan, China, and Japan at the American University of St. Thomas. He agrees that despite China’s increased diplomatic engagement in the Middle East recently, this has not translated into a leading mediation role in the current war between Hamas and Israel.
“We haven’t really seen the Chinese do anything new or take a leadership position in the current conflict. »
Israel-Palestine in Beijing’s Middle East strategy
Immediately after Hamas’s attack on Israel, the Chinese government was accused of responding in vague terms and adopting an evasive tone.
“At first they took a wait-and-see attitude,” Figueroa said.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry called for calm and restraint and refrained from condemning Hamas.
Beijing has traditionally prioritized relations with the Palestinians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
During Mao Zedong’s era, Beijing viewed the Palestinian struggle for land as part of the global national liberation movement, according to Hongda Fan, a professor at the Institute of Middle East Studies at the University of China. International Airports in Shanghai.
“A lot of our understanding of the Palestinian issue still stems from this perception,” Fan told Al Jazeera.
In 1965, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was allowed to open a diplomatic mission in China, later upgraded to an embassy in 1974. Beijing was probably the main arms supplier to the PLO for a time in the 1960s and 1970s, according to Beirut. Institute for Palestine Studies and has recognized the State of Palestine since 1988.
However, China has also expanded its ties with Israel.
China established full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992 and has since invested billions in its economy – with its investments in the Palestinian territories negligible in comparison.
But Chinese investments in Israel are in turn overshadowed by its economic relations with Saudi Arabia.
“China has invested heavily in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries,” Figueroa said.
Beijing and Riyadh announced investment deals worth $10 billion in June.
Trade between the two countries reached $106 billion in 2022, almost double the value of trade between Saudi Arabia and the United States.
China is also the main buyer of Saudi and Iranian oil.
This is part of a wider development that has seen China become the Arab world’s main trading partner.
According to Figueroa, China’s deep economic ties with the Gulf states have contributed to a Chinese view of the Middle East centered on certain Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia.
So when it became clear that there would be a violent outcry from these countries following Israeli military operations in Gaza, Chinese rhetoric became much more clearly pro-Palestinian, Figueroa observed.
Subsequently, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang accused Israel of going “beyond self-defense” in its military actions in Gaza.
Oppose the United States
This put the Chinese government at odds with the United States.
Although there has been an absence of Chinese diplomatic leadership in the conflict, analysts say, China has been more outspoken in its criticism of Washington, even as the two countries try to rebuild a highly strained relationship .
In an editorial in the government-controlled China Daily, the newspaper accused the United States of “adding fuel to the fire by blindly supporting Israel in the ongoing conflict.” The official Global Times newspaper said in its own editorial that the United States was “stained with the blood of innocent civilians” after the United States vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on October 18 , written by Brazil, calling for a humanitarian pause in the conflict. to allow aid to arrive in Gaza.
On October 27, a resolution presented to the United Nations General Assembly, authored by Jordan, received the support of 120 countries. The United States voted against, while China voted in favor.
Before that, China, alongside Russia, vetoed a US draft resolution affirming Israel’s right to defend itself and demanding that Iran stop exporting weapons to extremist groups.
“The draft does not reflect the world’s strongest calls for a ceasefire and an end to the fighting, and it does not help resolve the problem,” China’s UN ambassador said. Zhang Jun, to the Council after the vote.
Beijing is president of the Security Council this month and has said the war between Israel and Gaza will be a priority.
Outlining China’s plans for November, Zhang said the council’s performance was “not as good as the global community expects” and that every effort would be made to guide it toward concrete actions to promote political regulations.
“To be more precise, the top priority (this month) is to address the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict – namely Gaza – which is ongoing,” he said.
On Monday, at the request of China and the United Arab Emirates, the 15-member body will hold more closed-door deliberations on the conflict.
“The best scenario for China would be for the fighting to end as soon as possible and for China to be involved in some way in any potential negotiation process,” Figueroa said.
“But I’m not at all sure they’ll be able to get involved, frankly.”
