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 counter to those of the U.S.— it is close to Iran and has long supported the Palestinian cause. Yet until recently its priorities have been economic, while it has tried to maintain amicable relations with all sides in the region.
All these countries have different vision projects... and China’s been one of the biggest partners in that regard.
Jonathan Fulton, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council
In the last year or so, China has taken more diplomatic initiative, including
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