By South China Morning Post | Created at 2024-10-05 01:22:51 | Updated at 2024-10-05 03:15:41
2 hours ago
China’s stance on the escalating violence in the Middle East may reap some benefits as the United States becomes further distracted, according to analysts, but they warned there are reputational risks if it cannot live up to its self-appointed image as a mediator.
The conflict between Israel and Iran and its proxies has pushed the Middle East closer to a regional war and also threatens to drag in the US. Meanwhile, China may seek to seize the moral high ground by blaming Washington’s pro-Israel stance and continue to promote itself as an alternative peace broker.
During a United Nations Security Council meeting on Wednesday – the day after Iran’s missile attack on Israel – China’s ambassador Fu Cong called on all parties, “in particular Israel, to exercise restraint and refrain from any action that could lead to further escalation of the situation”.
Describing the situation in Gaza as a “hell on earth,” Fu attacked Israel’s disregard of international calls for an immediate ceasefire and its “stubborn” military operations, which he said had resulted in the “protraction and expansion of the conflict”.
“At present, an all-out war is on the brink of breaking out,” he said according to a statement from China’s foreign ministry.
