China acknowledged that Israel has the right to self defense against Hamas after being criticized over its stance on the war - and as Foreign Minister Wang Yi prepares for a high-profile visit to Washington.
"Every country has the right to self-defense but should abide by international humanitarian law and protect civilians," Wang told his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in a telephone call Monday, according to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency.
The remarks seem to represent the first time Beijing has acknowledged that Israel has the right to take action against Hamas - designated as a terrorist organization by the US and European Union.
China's president, Xi Jinping, called last week for an immediate cease-fire while offering to coordinate with Egypt and other Arab nations "to push for a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue as soon as possible."
China has refrained from condemning Hamas, which killed 1,400 people, many of them civilians, in an assault on Israel that began on Oct. 7. US congressional leaders confronted Xi over the issue on a visit to Beijing.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer asked China to stand with Israel and condemn the attacks, hours after he assailed Wang for showing "no sympathy or support for Israel during these tough, troubled times."
The Israelis also openly rebuked China. "Israel is deeply disappointed at China's official statements and media reports," Deputy Director-General in charge of Asia-Pacific Affairs Rafi Harpaz told Special Envoy on the Middle East Issue Zhai Jun during a call, according to an Oct. 13 statement in Chinese by the Israeli Embassy in Beijing.
Wang reiterated in Monday's call that China is "deeply concerned by the continued escalation of the conflict and the intensification of the situation" and "deeply saddened by the large number of civilian casualties caused by the conflict," according to Xinhua. He once again condemned all acts that harm civilians and opposes any violations of international laws.
The pivot occurred shortly before Wang's planned visit to US this week for high-level meetings. He will be in Washington Oct. 26 to Oct. 28 and will meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, senior Biden administration officials said on a briefing call with reporters on Monday.
In an interview with Bloomberg Television last week, Ambassador Nicholas Burns in Beijing said the US and China had differing views on the Israel-Hamas war. President Joe Biden affirmed the US's strong support for Israel during a visit to the country this week, while China has aligned with the Palestinian cause and avoided condemning Hamas.
Wang said Monday China does not pursue any selfish interests the issue and sincerely hopes that differences between Israel and Palestine can be comprehensively and fairly resolved on the basis of the two-state solution, so that the legitimate security concerns of all parties can be truly and thoroughly addressed.
"China will firmly support anything that is conducive to peace and will do its best as long as it is conducive to the reconciliation between Palestine and Israel, " he added.
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