During his talks with Xi, Abbas expressed hope that China would play a greater role in peaceful efforts in the Middle East. It turn, the Chinese leader reaffirmed China’s support and confirmed Beijing’s commitment to a two-state solution.
Xi also proposed to establish a trilateral dialogue mechanism, involving China, Palestine and Israel to support and develop peaceful efforts in the region.
China’s engagement in the conflict between Palestine and Israel reflects a broader trend in Beijing’s foreign policy.
Ji Kaiyuan, a senior expert at the Southwest University of China, said that in recent years China has emerged as one of the key players in the global arena and thus has the intention and obligation to participate in the peaceful settlement of conflicts.
Stanislav Tarasov, a political analyst and specialist in Middle Eastern studies, underscored that Chinese leader Xi Jinping "made a strong political move" towards boosting Beijing’s political and economic influence in the Middle East.
"The Israel-Palestine conflict is just an example. Other regional countries will also try to involve China in settlement efforts. They have their own interests, and China is now entering the Middle East with its own interests," Tarasov told Sputnik China.
According to the expert, Beijing’s priority goal is to expand its economic presence in the Middle East.
"The US has reduced its economic influence in the region, but continues to keep a military presence. China has a lot of money and needs new destinations for investments. This gives Beijing a serious advantage. As a result, Middle Eastern countries will have to turn their foreign policy from the US towards China," Tarasov pointed out.
"They understand that they will have to attract resources from China for their own interests," Tarasov concluded.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Foreign Ministry indicated Wednesday that Beijing is ready to undertake joint actions with the regional partners to find ways for a political settlement of the Libyan crisis.
"China is ready to continue promoting a political settlement in Libya together with the regional partners," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said after talks with his Tunisian counterpart Khemaies Jhinaoui.
