The outbreak of conflict in Israel shows it will be harder for China to match its economic clout in the region with diplomatic influence.
Saudi Arabia’s minister of state, Musaad bin Mohammed Al Aiban, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran’s security council, in Beijing, March 10, 2023. Credit: Chinese Ambassador Zhang Lizhong via X, formerly known as Twitter
The fallout from Hamas’s shocking attack on Israel has dominated global news bulletins this week. To date, China’s public response has been limited. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, who was visiting China with a bipartisan group of senators last week, called on Beijing for a stronger statement against the Hamas action, with the Chinese foreign ministry later issuing a statement condemning “acts that harm civilians.”
China’s interests in the Middle East have tended to run counte
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If Xi Jinping is becoming more preoccupied with internal politics, it could lead to a period of relative calm in China’s relations with the United States.
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