Palestinian President Abbas to visit China after mediation offer

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will make a state visit to China next week after Beijing expressed readiness to help facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

“At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, president of the state of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas will pay a state visit to China from June 13 to 16,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Friday.

Another ministry official, Wang Wenbin, told a regular briefing later in the day that Abbas was an “old and good friend of the Chinese people”.

“He is the first Arab head of state received by China this year, fully embodying the high level of China-Palestine good relations, which have traditionally been friendly,” he said, adding that “China has always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights.”

In December last year, President Xi visited Saudi Arabia on an Arab outreach visit that also saw him meet Abbas and pledge to “work for an early, just and durable solution to the Palestinian issue”.

In April, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts that his country was willing to aid peace negotiations, Xinhua reported.

The report added that Qin told Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki that Beijing supports the resumption of talks as soon as possible and pushes for implementing a “two-state solution”.

China’s role in the Middle East

Beijing has positioned itself as a mediator in the Middle East, a region where the United States has, for decades, been the main powerbroker.

In March, it brokered the restoration of ties between longtime Gulf rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia, which some analysts saw as a broader sign of a “changing global order”.

Its efforts have drawn rebukes from Washington.

During a trip to Saudi Arabia this week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Riyadh was not being forced to choose between Washington and Beijing, striking a conciliatory tone following tensions with the longtime ally.

Blinken has also this week sought to mediate Israeli-Palestinian tension, urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to undermine prospects for a Palestinian state.

Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations have been stalled since 2014.