China and The Wars in Ukraine and Israel

[Randy W]

Xi snubbed Putin after their summit, calling a meeting of Central Asian countries as part of an audacious power play

from Business Insider via Yahoo News

Russian President Vladimir Putin with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on Tuesday.MIKHAIL TERESHCHENKO/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

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Xi invited the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan to the first China-Central Asia summit on Wednesday, the AFP news agency reported. It remains unclear whether Turkmenistan has been invited.

The states are all former members of the Soviet Union, and Moscow has long regarded them as being in its sphere of influence after the Russian Empire conquered them in the 19th century.

 . . .

Analysts say that China has secured significant leverage over Russia in return for its diplomatic and economic support, and that in calling the meeting of Central Asian nations it is seeking to exploit that advantage.

 

 

Edited March 24, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

China to send special envoy to Ukraine after Xi Jinping holds phone call with Volodymyr Zelensky

• China has always stood ‘on the side of peace’, Xi tells Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during hour-long call
• Zelensky, who initiated the call, has described it as ‘long and meaningful’

from the SCMP

President Xi Jinping said “talks and negotiation” were the “only way out” of the war between Russia and Ukraine. Photo: TNS
 

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The envoy will help conduct “in-depth communication” with all parties involved to “find a political settlement to the Ukraine crisis”, he said.

Li was the Chinese ambassador to Russia between 2009 and 2019 and is a familiar face to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow had “taken notice of China’s willingness to facilitate negotiations with Ukraine”.

“We note the readiness of the Chinese side to make efforts to establish the negotiation process,” Zakharova said during a news conference on Wednesday.

 . . .

During Wednesday’s call, Xi pledged long-term cooperation with Ukraine and said mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity was the foundation of China-Ukraine relations. He did not mention the invasion or name Russia at all.

 

 

 

[Randy W]

After Xi Jinping’s call with Volodymyr Zelensky thrilled many in Europe, now comes a new take: calm down

• Some officials feel the call showed China is serious in its efforts to broker peace in Ukraine and might also change its stance on Russia
• But one diplomat calls the excitement ‘a function of the Europeans’ wish to have been handed justification for keeping business as usual with Beijing’

from the SCMP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on a telephone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 26. Photo: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service via EPA-EFE
 

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“They are taking baby steps,” said one EU official of China. “They will move step by step in the right direction, adjusting to the situation on the ground.”

It later emerged that China had abstained from voting on the language in the resolution that applied to Ukraine.

Now, as the dust settles on Beijing’s diplomatic flurry, other voices around Europe are proffering a more sober assessment: dialogue is good, but let’s not get carried away.

 . . .

Both Germany and France have “invested bags of political capital in China”, the diplomat noted, and Beijing’s words on peace are “willingly embraced to achieve tangible results for the struggling German economy”.

The diplomat added: “One swallow does not a summer make.”

Rather than expecting substantial change from Beijing, Noah Barkin, an analyst of EU-China relations at Rhodium Group, said Europe should be “coming to terms with a new era of close cooperation between Beijing and Moscow and the implications this has for their security”.

“The reality is that China has significant geopolitical reasons for sticking with Russia, and they will continue to shape its approach,” he added.

 

 

[Randy W]

China doesn't know what to think about their BFF Putin's behavior in Ukraine, but they are trying really hard to not pull back from their "no limits" friendship.

China urges parties to refrain from escalating conflict over Kremlin drone attack

from CGTN

China's Foreign Ministry on Thursday urged all parties in the Russia-Ukraine conflict to refrain from any action that could further escalate the situation.  

China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning made the remark at a daily briefing regarding the Russia-claimed drone attack at the Kremlin on Wednesday which Ukraine has denied responsibility.

 

 

[Randy W]

C'mon, China! Take a position! You're not making any peace!

‘China is not Europe’: EU move to tie Chinese relations to Ukraine war is unfair, Fu Cong says

• Fu Cong says new sanctions on Russia that are expected to target Chinese companies lack evidence
• Envoy warns of ‘strong responses’ if sanctions go ahead

from the SCMP

Chinese envoy to the EU Fu Cong defended China’s neutral position on Ukraine and reaffirmed its role as a peacemaker. Photo: AFP
 

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It is “unfair” and “not sensible” for European lawmakers to link the war in Ukraine with China-EU relations, China’s ambassador to the European Union said, warning of retaliation if the bloc targeted Chinese companies in new Russia sanctions.

In an interview with the British magazine the New Statesman republished on the website of the Chinese mission to the European Union on Sunday, Fu Cong said it was “unrealistic” to expect China to adopt the same position as the EU.

The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said earlier this month that China-EU relations would be “critically affected” if Beijing did not press Russia to withdraw from Ukraine.

 . . .

“China is not Europe, China’s interests are different from those of Europe and China maintains good relations with both Russia and Ukraine. China’s position is understandable.”

 . . .

The new sanctions, reportedly to be passed as early as next week, are expected to restrict exports to at least seven Chinese companies accused of circumventing existing EU sanctions by selling dual-use items they imported from Europe to Russia.

The companies include four already blacklisted by the United States – mainland-based 3HC Semiconductors and King-Pai Technology, and Hong Kong-based Sinno Electronics and Sigma Technology – as well as Asia Pacific Links, Tordan Industry and Alpha Trading Investments in Hong Kong, according to the Financial Times.

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

China Ukraine envoy urges allies to ‘stop sending weapons’ to Kyiv

 

from the A.P., via Yahoo News

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China’s Ukraine envoy called on other governments Friday to “stop sending weapons to the battlefield” and appealed for peace talks at a time when Washington and its European allies are ramping up supplies of missiles and tanks to Ukrainian forces trying to recapture Russian-occupied territory.

Li Hui said Russian and Ukrainian officials were open to peace negotiations, but he gave no indication they were any closer to happening.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s government says it is neutral and wants to serve as a mediator but has supported Moscow politically. Foreign analysts saw little chance of progress from Li’s visits to the countries because neither side is ready to stop fighting, but sending an envoy gave Beijing a opportunity to expand its global diplomatic role.

“China believes that if we really want to put an end to war, to save lives and realize peace, it is important for us to stop sending weapons to the battlefield, or else the tensions will only spiral up,” Li told reporters.

 

 

[Randy W]

Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to visit China in October, Kremlin says

• The announcement comes soon after the leader decided to skip a summit in South Africa because of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him
• China is not a signatory to the treaty that established the court, so Putin can travel to there more easily

from the SCMP

A man examines Russian matryoshka dolls with portraits of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a street souvenir shop in Moscow in March. Photo: EPA-EFE
 

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Russian news agencies quoted Putin’s foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, as saying the trip will be timed to coincide with a Belt and Road Initiative forum in China. Beijing’s belt and road plan involves infrastructure projects to connect Asia with European and African countries.

 . . .

China has sought to project itself as neutral in the Ukraine conflict, even while it has refused to condemn Moscow’s actions and declared last year that it had a “no-limits” friendship with Russia. Beijing has denounced Western sanctions against Moscow, and accused Nato and the United States of provoking Putin’s military action.

China has also proposed a peace plan that was largely dismissed by Ukraine’s allies, who insisted that Moscow must withdraw its forces from the neighbouring country as a condition for peace.

 

 

 

[Randy W]

from Heather Cox Richardson on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/posts/pfbid0sD4x2qTJZhRAoUv8XAwJ5i6A5dXmeM62FZYhiz9fCKmwxKWtz5WPCKnE5Zccayxwl

August 7, 2023 (Monday)
Things feel unsettled these days, partly because of chop in the prosecutorial waters surrounding the actions of former president Trump, partly because of changes in the U.S. economy, partly because of turmoil brought by climate change, and partly because of what appears to be the instability of a global realignment. This realignment has been forced by Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the global effort to stand against that aggression.
Over the weekend, on August 5 and 6, representatives of 40 countries met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to explore the contours of peace between Ukraine and Russia. Russia was not invited to the meeting, but all the other members of BRICS (the economic organization made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) attended, illustrating Russia’s increasing isolation. 
In February 2022, just before Russia invaded Ukraine, China and Russia pledged a “friendship without limits.” But that friendship appears to have frayed as what Russia seemed to think would be a quick land grab has stretched on for almost a year and half, straining Russia’s resources and isolating it from the global community. China sent its special envoy for Eurasian affairs and former ambassador to Russia, Li Hui, to the talks in Saudi Arabia.
Reporting on the weekend’s meeting, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that China’s “increasing misalignment with Russia on any settlement to end the war in Ukraine was…evident at the talks.” It noted the observation of the Financial Times that Chinese representatives were “keen to show that [China] is not Russia,” and that Russia appears to be more and more isolated from other nations. The ISW assesses that “China is not fully aligned with Russia on the issue of Ukraine and that Russia and China’s relationship is not a ‘no limits partnership’ as the Kremlin desires.”
Laurie Chen and Martin Quin Pollard of Reuters reported yesterday that China’s willingness to attend the talks in Saudi Arabia after declining to join earlier talks in Denmark likely indicates a recognition that it should participate in credible peace initiatives. Shen Dingli, an international relations scholar based in Shanghai, said that Russia is “bound to be defeated,” so China must try to cooperate with other nations without speeding Russia’s collapse.
Bloomberg noted that increasing tensions between China and Russia do not indicate a rift between the two countries so much as a way to create some space between the two. In a phone call today with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi reaffirmed that the nations are “good partners.”
Ukraine’s request for the meeting in Saudi Arabia seemed designed to isolate Russia further, as Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky made the case that the terms on which he is demanding any peace be based on universal principles behind which other nations can unite. 
Russia has continued its attack on Ukrainian grain supplies, damaging another 40,000 tons of grain destined for Africa, China, and Israel on August 2. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian counteroffensive continues, although it is advancing more slowly than Ukrainian officials had hoped.
China has its own issues with the global community. Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post reported today that since 2020, Chinese operatives have penetrated Japan’s defense networks in one of the most damaging hacks of Japan’s modern history. And Italy, which in 2019 was the only major western economy supporting China’s Belt and Road Initiative to tie together world markets and boost trade between China and Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, is now planning to pull back from the project. 
On Sunday, Italian defense minister Guido Crosetto told a newspaper that signing the deal was “an improvised and atrocious act…. We exported a load of oranges to China; they tripled exports to Italy in three years.” An expert on Italian relations with China says Italy wants to demonstrate a close alignment with “the U.S., Western camp” while keeping a stable relationship with China. 
World affairs have shifted since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

 

Edited October 16, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

Israel-Gaza war upends China’s Mideast ambitions but may serve Beijing in the end
China has extended its hand to both PA and Israel, but its neutrality following Hamas’s massacre of civilians has infuriated Jerusalem

from the Times of Israel

Composite photo, from left to right: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for photographers ahead of their talks at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Beijing, China, on March 21, 2017. (Etienne Oliveau/Pool Photo via AP); China's President Xi Jinping (right) and PA President Mahmoud Abbas shake hands after a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, June 14, 2023. (Jade Gao/Pool Photo via AP)

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In June, Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted the Palestinian Authority president in Beijing and invited the prime minister for an official state visit. Benjamin Netanyahu accepted, and China was on track for a bigger role in the region.

Then came the Hamas terror group’s devastating October 7 onslaught against Israel, in which over 1,300 people were killed, about 1,000 of them civilians. The onslaught, which triggered a war as Israel’s vows to destroy Hamas in Gaza, is all but certain to lead to the cancelation of Netanyahu’s late October trip, and has put Beijing’s Middle East approach to the test. China’s stated neutrality on the war has upset Israel, but Beijing may gain in the long run by forging closer ties with Arab countries, experts said.

“For a while at least, Beijing’s Middle East policy is paralyzed by the war,” said Shi Yinhong, professor of international relations at Beijing-based Renmin University of China. “The US, which strongly supports Israel, is directly or indirectly involved. Who is there to listen to China?”

 

 

Edited October 16, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

Israel missing from Chinese digital maps by Baidu and Alibaba, region appears without label
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that these Chinese online maps no longer label Israeli territory. This remained the case Tuesday, ThePrint verified.

from The Print (India)

The Baidu map demarcates borders and labels cities, but gives no names for Israel or Palestinian territories as a whole | Screenshot

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After The Wall Street Journal reported this late Monday, ThePrint accessed these platforms Tuesday and verified that this remained the case.

In the case of Baidu, the border lines between Israel and the Palestinian territories — the West Bank and Gaza — are clearly demarcated, as are major cities like Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. However, no names are given to mark Israel or the Palestinian territories as a whole, although a search for the term “Israel” in Mandarin directs to a zoomed-out version of the entire Israel-Palestine region. 

Alibaba’s Amap, on the other hand, is far vaguer in its presentation of the region, with the territory on the map just appearing as a blank space. Neither are the borderlines between Israeli territory, the West Bank and Gaza marked, nor do any names of urban areas located within these territories show up. A search for the term “Israel” in Mandarin redirects to Israeli consular services in China. 

The Journal’s report added that this ambiguous removal of the country labels on the maps “matches Beijing’s vague diplomacy in the region and contrasts with its attentiveness to maps generally…China’s government has over the years cried foul and levied fines over maps published elsewhere online, such as on hotel websites, for failing to strictly adhere to Beijing’s territorial claims, like leaving off a nine-dotted line stretching around the South China Sea that isn’t internationally recognised.”

China historically supported the Palestinian cause and a two-state solution, having supplied arms to the Palestine Liberation Organization, but has since evolved to become a significant trading partner with Israel today. 

However, China’s initial statement on the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war was controversial in its lack of direct condemnation of Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians on 7 October.

 

 

 

[Randy W]

Putin Ally Lashes Out at China

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin poses with TV anchor Vladimir Solovyov during an awards ceremony at the Kremlin in Moscow on December 25, 2013. China has become the latest target of derisive attacks in a Russian state media broadcast featuring Solovyov following a meeting between Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, and U.S. President Joe Biden.© MIKHAIL METZEL/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

from Newsweek via MSN

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"We are ahead of China in terms of military technology," Vladimir Solovyov, a prominent Kremlin propagandist and staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said during a recent broadcast.

"Why should we idolize China? What houses in China have heating? And how many have a pension?" Solovyov said, during a discussion with a state media guest, in a brief clip published on social media.

Newsweek has reached out to the Chinese foreign ministry for comment via email.

The remarks from Solovyov, one of the best-known Kremlin mouthpieces, are a move away from his frequent and virulent criticism of Western countries providing support for Ukraine in its war effort against Moscow.

 

 

[Randy W]

Belarus President Lukashenko heading to China second time this year

https://ground.news/article/lukashenko-will-meet-with-xi-jinping

• Chinese leader Xi Jinping met with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Beijing, discussing strengthened political mutual trust and international coordination.
• China aims to include Belarus as a core member of its "Belt and Road Initiative" for infrastructure development. Lukashenko's support for Russia in the war against Ukraine and crackdown on political opponents have led to his increasing isolation.
• However, Belarus' heavily state-controlled economy limits major economic cooperation with China. Xi expressed China's opposition to external interference in Belarus' internal affairs.

old news from a month ago, but still relevant