There were recent reports of a meeting between Israel's ambassador in Beijing, Irit Ben-Abba, and the director of the International Liaison Department of the Communist Party, Liu Jianchao, with unusual messages ostensibly conveyed by the Chinese official, calling on Israel to be careful not to harm its relations with China due to American pressure.
Despite the alarming title of the report, there is no need to panic, first, due to the content. These are not new messages, but recycled old ones, which are relayed repeatedly by the Chinese side. Nevertheless, it is worth paying special attention to the message that seeks to separate China's relations with various countries from their relations with the US. In other words, while Washington works to form a united front of allies, China is making efforts to dissolve those alliances and pursue a bilateral approach.
Second, due to the timing. In the words by that official to the ambassador, there is no special content, and precisely the most timely issue at the moment – Taiwan – was not mentioned in the report. Therefore, it is more likely that this is an official who recently assumed his position and as part of his work holds a round of meetings with foreign ambassadors and conveys the Chinese messages to them. Indeed, according to the report, these messages were sent "to every Western country."
The messages conveyed from the Israeli side are also based on the same statements that the Chinese have heard from Israel for a long time, especially regarding Chinese support for Iran and Israel being a close ally of the US.
In conclusion, this is not sensational news, but it is worth paying attention to the geopolitical framing of events and the increasing efforts of the powers to form opposing camps for themselves. These efforts will increase as the rivalry between China and the US intensifies.
There were recent reports of a meeting between Israel's ambassador in Beijing, Irit Ben-Abba, and the director of the International Liaison Department of the Communist Party, Liu Jianchao, with unusual messages ostensibly conveyed by the Chinese official, calling on Israel to be careful not to harm its relations with China due to American pressure.
Despite the alarming title of the report, there is no need to panic, first, due to the content. These are not new messages, but recycled old ones, which are relayed repeatedly by the Chinese side. Nevertheless, it is worth paying special attention to the message that seeks to separate China's relations with various countries from their relations with the US. In other words, while Washington works to form a united front of allies, China is making efforts to dissolve those alliances and pursue a bilateral approach.
Second, due to the timing. In the words by that official to the ambassador, there is no special content, and precisely the most timely issue at the moment – Taiwan – was not mentioned in the report. Therefore, it is more likely that this is an official who recently assumed his position and as part of his work holds a round of meetings with foreign ambassadors and conveys the Chinese messages to them. Indeed, according to the report, these messages were sent "to every Western country."
The messages conveyed from the Israeli side are also based on the same statements that the Chinese have heard from Israel for a long time, especially regarding Chinese support for Iran and Israel being a close ally of the US.
In conclusion, this is not sensational news, but it is worth paying attention to the geopolitical framing of events and the increasing efforts of the powers to form opposing camps for themselves. These efforts will increase as the rivalry between China and the US intensifies.