China is ready to help facilitate peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, China's foreign minister told his counterparts in both countries this week, with the offer coming as Israel officials have complained about the weakness of President Joe Biden when it comes to their nation and others, particularly Iran.
The calls between Foreign Minister Qin Gang and the top diplomats for Israel and the Palestinian Authority came separately, reported The Times of Israel, quoting Xinhua News Agency.
Qin, while speaking with Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, encouraged "steps to resume peace talks," and said "China is ready to provide convenience for this," according to a summarization of the phone call.
Cohen's office said he told Qin about the "danger [Israel] sees in the Iranian nuclear program — a danger that is shared by many countries in the region, including countries that have diplomatic relations with Iran."
Meanwhile, Qin told Palestinian foreign minister Riyad Al-Maliki that Beijing wants talks to resume as soon as possible, and in both calls emphasized China's push on the bases of bringing about a "two-state solution" between the two nations.
Last month, a senior official close to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed a deal brokered by China between Saudi Arabia and Iran on the weaknesses of Biden and the former Israeli government, telling reporters that Saudi Arabia "turned to other channels," reports The Times of Israel.
An unnamed senior Likud official also has claimed that Netanyahu is not concerned by any criticisms from Biden, as he's looking forward to the 2024 election and is sure a Republican will win, the publication reported.
Danny Danon, a member of Israel's Knesset and a former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, told Newsmax on Monday that the Biden administration is not doing an effective job in neutralizing Iran's ambitions.
"We feel that the U.S. administration is not preparing to neutralize Iran," Danon said. "That's why we're preparing all options for the day that we would have to actually neutralize that threat."
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said last week in a Fox News interview that Biden's weakness is leading long-time U.S. allies to turn to China and away from the U.S. as the world's prime superpower.
The peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority have stalled since 2014. But China, with its recent diplomatic offensive, was able to restore ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia, where the U.S., as the main diplomatic power broker, had not been able to stop the rivalry between the two nations.
The potential of talks between Israel and the Palestinians comes when tensions are on the rise, including with the violence at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem earlier this month, reported The Guardian.
Qin reportedly told Cohen that China is "concerned about the current tension between Israel and Palestine, and the current top priority is to bring the situation under control and prevent the conflict from escalating or even getting out of control," the publication reported.
"Saudi Arabia and Iran recently restored diplomatic relations through dialogue, setting a good example of overcoming differences through dialogue," he also said.
China earlier this year produced a peace plan for Ukraine and Russia, and while western leaders dismissed it, Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed it, but said it would only be successful with Russian President Vladimir Putin pulling all troops out of occupied Ukrainian territories.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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